Behind Closed Doors
by Wends
Summary: As Sora continues his journey to close keyholes and save worlds, something's slipped through the shadows in Hollow Bastion. Venturing from world to world it searches, seeking him in a desperate attempt to harness his light. CL,LexZex,shonenai content
1. Identity

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For further notes on this silly thing, please see the long author's note at the end of the story.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 1  
The Heartless – Identity

I have a name.

I use that fact as something to distinguish myself from those who surround me, from those who are so very like me in so many fashions. I use it to define myself, to separate myself from the gathered hordes that remain without identification, likened unto the atmosphere that engulfs us.

I am different. I am not one as they are.

They are nothing but emotionless beings, driven to grasp that which we don't possess ourselves. That beat we all lack. That warmth we all exist without. They strive for that touch of light they can never reclaim because they lack identity. They lack definition. They are nothing.

Nothing more than the shadows created by light, nothing more than the shadows remaining once light has been stripped from the heart.

I was not created as they were. I know this fact.

They were once ordinary people like myself. Their hearts were claimed by darkness, ripped away from their chests by the sharpened claws of our brethren, the light crushed from them with one mighty squeeze and demolished for all eternity. They are the byproducts left behind once that light is destroyed.

Their entire purpose in existence is to find more light, to decimate more light. To seek that which they will eternally lack owing to their lack of ability to assimilate it and return to what we once were.

They cannot bring that light into themselves, cannot find balance between light and dark every again, because they have no definition of self.

They've become one with this place. They've become the darkness that floods this realm.

I have not. I can still the quaking desire to destroy.

They cannot. They exist only to find light, only to bring it to darkness. They exist onto to see the expansion of the dark Kingdom's borders, to see all worlds brought in and absorbed by it. They exist only to bright to reality the ultimate goal of supreme darkness – to mess with all light that floods all worlds and bring it into itself, to create and absorb that heart of all worlds.

I want no part in that.

I have different goals, a different purpose.

They seek the doors to other worlds. They seek to open them. They seek to plunder those worlds that lay beyond those doors, to terrify and take in those individuals they discover, to create more of their seemingly infinite numbers. They seek destruction.

I wish to stop them.

I don't really know why anymore. All I know is that goal sets me apart from them. That goal. The fact that I know I'm different. The name I have. All of those things set me apart from those creatures that surround me, despite all appearances.

Others might look and not realize I am different. I couldn't find any blame to lay in that. To one who's not familiar with my brethren, it's an easy mistake to make. After all, we all look identical.

Same antennae. Same claws. Same stooped posture. Same bodies crafted of nothing but darkness. Same ability to flatten ourselves to any surface and move as a shadow anywhere we desire. Same nomenclature assigned to all of us.

We are all Heartless.

I, however, have a name. A name other than 'Heartless' or 'Shadow.'

I also used to have different eyes. Those few times I've peered out upon the waters of the worlds outside of the Kingdom, they were drastically different from those my counterparts sport. Lately they've been fading to the same gold as my other brethren.

That fact has driven me to restrict myself to the darkness I now inhabit.

I fear that I am becoming one of them, that I am being assimilated by the impermeable darkness. I fear that soon I will have no name, no goal, nor any method of separating myself from the mindless hordes that follow the Kingdom's lust for destruction.

I would rather remain forever locked away in this land than risk destroying those worlds outside. I will remain in the innermost shadows of darkness if the urge to crush the light I still find so precious and fascinating becomes overwhelming. I will refuse the light when my eyes are permanently gold.

That's another thing that differentiates me from them.

They're driven by greedy lust to the outside worlds. Whenever a doors is discovered waves of my fellow Shadows race towards that exit from our world, their claws sharp and the dark abyss within their chests that once held hearts begging for light.

I don't run for that light. I linger by the door.

Once I didn't just linger and helplessly stare at the door with my fading eyes. Once I'd held a purpose, distinct and detrimental to the plans of those who inhabit this dark realm with me.

I was closing them. I was closing those doors from the inside, making them ready for whoever it was that was locking them in my wake.

I no longer know how I was doing that, though.

I still seek out the doors. I usually find them before the others. But I can no longer remember how I was getting those doors to close.

I know why. I was protecting people who exist on the other side of these doors from my brethren. I was protecting them from being absorbed by Kingdom hearts.

But how I was doing that is a mystery. I don't even recall who it was or what it was that was successfully locking all of those doors I was barricading against the Shadows of these lands.

And so now I sit, useless and afraid, watching as my counterparts flood yet another world. Another world I was unable to save, another door I was unable to force shut before they desecrated it.

As I watch the last of the Heartless pour through the opening into that once pristine and untouched world, as I watch the animals fall one by one to the claws of the Shadows, as I watch light being stripped away from the farmers and the hounds and the foxes that inhabit the woods, I bow my head, my antennae quivering slightly with the movement, and lightly caress the one vestment of my former self that I still possess.

My sharp claws delicately touch the simple swath of black fabric, the feel of its silken material comforting me.

After all, I only have three things remaining to separate me from the horrors that flood this place. Those ideals that beat within my lost, distant heart and keep me from leaping towards those with light in a lust-driven frenzy, intent on stripping it away to supplement my own loss. That piece of cloth that rests in my hand, salvaged from my human body before it faded and became what I now am, seen minute moments before vanishing from reality by my different eyes.

The name I possess.

If only I could remember what it is….

_-tbc-_

* * *

A/N 2: Alrighty, a little bit of explanation's in order. I'm attempting to keep this game-based. I'm also attempting to place this in whatever short span of time might have elapsed between the end of KH1 and KH:CoM. So while it can be taken as exceptionally AU, I'm trying to make it no so unreasonable to purists. 

Keeping true to the KH game, I've kept the ages of the characters: Sora's 14, Riku would be 15, the Disney characters are indeterminable (lol), Cloud's 22, Aerith's 23, Yuffie's 16, Cid's 42, and Squally-boy's 25. A bit of research proved that the FF7 characters weren't subjected to the same miraculous aging that Squall/Leon was (except Cid. I'm claiming he lied about his age), so any future appearances of VII characters will feature them at their VII ages (once again, except Cid). No other FF8 characters will be popping in – explanation's provided in the story.

I'll also be attempting to integrate FF7 and FF8 storylines into this, so don't be surprised if Leon decides to take a few moments to mentally whine about missing Rinoa and the gang or ponder if the continuous battles against the Heartless could possibly be even worse than his war against Ultimecia or if he blasts forth with sarcasm concerning magical happenings and how the mystique with them is rather dulled by having been through a few bouts of time compression before. And don't be surprised if Cloud wanks about Sephiroth and all of his poor convoluted little problems experienced in his rather entertaining past – or if he breaks a wig and a shimmery purple dress out of storage for a quick trip down memory lane. XD I love Wall Market in FF7! (snigger)

Weapons that I'm using are weapons I earned while playing the game – I'm one of those annoying 'must complete everything' players, so expects ultimate weapons. The big exception to this is Cloud – it'd be confusing to have 2 Ultima Weapons running amuck, so Sora gets to keep his. Cloud gets his First Tsurugi instead which isn't from the game, but rather is that awesome 6-sword combination bastard from Advent Children. It's sooooo kick-ass! (drools all over herself). But from what I've heard, it actually appears in KH2! Woot! (happy dance)

I started writing this on cruise. I'd beaten KH1, decided to go mash the crap out of KH:CoM, and was whimpering forlornly because KH2 wasn't coming out for another freaking 6 months. So on watch I started writing this, wasting my time dreaming about fanfiction instead of monitoring my nuclear power plant. Yeah, I'm a bad little girl. :)

In the interest of keeping this moving and easier to write than some of my other stories, there's page limits on the chapters. As the Heartless degrades, its chapters will get continually shorter – the max chapter for it is 3 pages. Everyone else is set at 9 pages flat. Just so it's made obvious that there won't be any 30 page word-fests in this story like there are in my other tales. (sweatdrop)

* * *

Anyway, if you like this, please review! While lack of reviews won't necessarily stop me from writing, it does slow me down – I work on what gets reviewed first, and the rest gets attention only when those stories or my brain's attention span for those stories are exhausted. So if you want more faster, please submit! 

(thwacks her forehead) I just said 'submit.' Why does that bring back terrible memories of Ansem battles from CoM and 1? Aiiiiiiii…..


	2. Landing

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

A/N 2: This was written long before KH2 came out in Japan. Therefore the contents of the letter mentioned are sheer speculation and probably not close to being right. And no whining about it being 'Aeris.' Square themselves put out that the correct English translation for the name is Aerith. Deal, FF7 fanboys/girls. Aerith they say, so Aerith it stays. :P

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 2  
The Keyblade Master – Landing

I groaned as I lifted my bangs out of my face.

It had been a bit of a rough landing.

"Hey, you guys alright?"

A few uneasy shifts and a hand landing right at my side, its huge white glove a stark contrast to the dark blue coloration of the ground and the water it splashed in, were accompanied by a groan followed by a confirmation that my companions were indeed fine.

"Gawrsh, that sure was a close one!" Goofy cheerfully mused even as he pried his large form off of my own.

Donald, having been firmly sandwiched between us, lifted his bill from my bottom with a disgruntled huff. "Wouldn't have happened if I were driving," he snarled, his gravely voice accusingly biting at my ears even as he hopped to his large webbed feet – right in the small of my back.

"Ow! Hey, watch it!"

"Sorry," Donald cackled. Yeah, right. I knew he wasn't sorry at all.

The duck finally hopped off of my back, letting me lift myself from my rather wet landing spot. I rose queasily to my feet and shook my head, flinging my unmanageable hair away from my eyes.

"Wow," I finally uttered as I got my bearings and located the site of my adventurous landing. "We really got thrown far, didn't we?"

Donald grumbled something unintelligible under his breath, even as Goofy just 'Hyucked' in agreement.

Finally the duck stomped his feet, all pretense at anger management lost. "You know, Sora, this only happens when you pilot! From now on, I pilot the gummi! Period!"

"Come on!" I fired right back. "Last time you piloted, we nearly got blown out of the sky by Heartless because you panicked and couldn't find the laser controls!"

"At least I can land us in one piece!"

"Assuming you can make it somewhere in one piece!"

"Uh, guys…."

"What!"

Goofy shrunk under our combined shout, his large eyes a bit miffed and his nose quivering. "Don't'cha think that instead of standin' out here arguin', we outta be goin' to the Castle?"

Leave it to Goofy to be the one voice of common sense among us. Looking down at Donald, I sighed quietly.

We've been fighting like this for ages.

And we've never, ever come close to an agreement on who should get to pilot the gummi.

Alright, I'll admit it! So it's a bit immature for a nearly 15-year-old teenager to be arguing to the death with a stubborn duck about such things! Still, the gummi's awfully fun to drive. And why should he get all the fun?

Just because I've crashed it a few times… one mistake (alright, four or five mistakes) and a guy never gets to do anything ever again.

"Yeah, you're right," I finally admitted, turning my gaze to Goofy for a few moments before flashing a bright smile at Donald and offering him my hand. "You get the gummi."

Oldest trick in the book when it comes to dealing with Donald. To end any fight prematurely, offer him what he wants and he instantly forgives you.

"Agreed!" he huffed as he shook my hand. "Now, let's get this over with. I don't really like this place."

"I don't have fond memories of it either, but every other place we've been to hasn't lead us to any new clues," I sighed quietly even as I looked at the daunting task before us.

Despite the fact that this was no longer the center of Ansem's attempt to draw the worlds completely into the Heartless' domain, Hollow Bastion was still a rather intimidating sight. If it weren't for the disappearance of a pair of very important people, I'd never have returned here.

We've been searching for what seems like forever, and we still haven't found the door to the light.

We haven't even found any real clues.

The letter that Pluto carried, much to our dismay, simply warned of coming danger that was equivalent to, if not directly related to the Heartless. It spoke of other doors and asked me, Goofy and Donald to find them and close them before it was too late.

Infinite worlds with infinite doors leading to Kingdom Hearts?

I wanted to give up.

However, there were two important factors that made me continue on, accepting that task.

King Mickey, who was so concerned for the worlds that he went headlong into darkness, seeking the light that is buried in its interior, searching for a way to release that light so if a door to that dark Kingdom were wrenched open light would flood out.

Riku, who helped me close the door to Kingdom hearts that existed on Destiny Islands, who sacrificed himself for all of us.

If I could find more doors to Kingdom hearts, there is a possibility I can find Riku and the King.

That's what lead us back to this nightmarish place. Without a single clue as to where the 'door to the light' that King Mickey urged us to find is actually located, without a direction as to where that junction at which we would meet the mouse would like, we were a bit overwhelmed with the magnitude of the task.

Donald had thought that perhaps revisiting those worlds we'd sealed before would help. It ook us a few days of waiting, but once the first star fell from the sky the barriers between worlds started to crumble and we were free to move with our gummi once more. We'd instantly set out for Traverse Town.

Not surprisingly, we'd found nothing there. Traverse Town was a quiet little place these days, not a Heartless in sight and many empty buildings lacking the residents who had been displaced by darkness.

The same was true with Deep Jungle. Atlantica. Halloween Town. Neverland. Wonderland. Even the Coliseum was lacking in Heartless competition (however, there was a plethora of strange mythical monsters. We managed to come out on top in the new-improved-hero-smashing Zeus Cup, but barely!). We'd visited Merlin and found that the Adventures of Pooh were still calm and sedate, nothing wrong with that world. For once it seemed that all was right in the universe.

However, stars were still falling. We just weren't reaching the right worlds in time to stop them from collapsing.

Once upon a time, I used to look to the sky and think that falling stars were lucky, something to be wished on. Now seeing a star fall brings a sense of dread and despair to my heart.

Hollow Bastion held the answers before. I could only pray that it would hold the answers again. A grim, stoic frown took my lips as I took my first step forward onto the odd watery landscape, my feet splashing but not sinking as I planted my shoes. Letting a sigh leak from my lips, I closed my eyes, focusing on the rather large task I had before me.

I remember what it was like last time I traveled the path to the massive castle's forbidden doors. Last time, when I had the Beast by my side and a wooden sword in my hand, Riku having taken the keyblade from me with a smirk and a sarcastic proclamation that I wasn't up to saving Kairi.

I'd never felt as I did in that moment ever before in my life. Some part of me hated him for taking the keyblade, for insulting me, for questioning my abilities. Some part of me hated me for recognizing that he was completely right. Some part of me asked why I wasn't capable of rescuing Kairi, as she was the center of everything, and why I wasn't fighting Riku to get my keyblade back. The rest of me was sulking miserably, realizing that Riku was more capable of saving her than I was – after all, he always won our competitions.

Then my heart kicked the crap out of my brain and told me to go after him anyway, that Riku wasn't really acting like himself and he needed a good throttling to return to normal and that Kairi needed me to come help her because Riku's behavior made me wonder if he was really in this to save her like I was. I'd picked up that wooden sword and ventured up the cascading waters with their odd floating rocks, the huge devoted Beast by my side protecting me.

I'd regretfully rejoiced when I'd met Riku for our second fight in that castle that now loomed before me. When his voice was overlaid with another, much deeper and lacking concern and emotion. When his eyes shined with a light that wasn't at all natural, their gaze piercing and ferocious as he glowered at me without recognition of our friendship. When he'd told me that he was Ansem, the seeker of darkness. It wasn't Riku I was facing at all. My best friend hadn't entirely turned against me. It made it a lot easier to fight him, to open up with all of my ability I'd harnessed over my adventures with Goofy and Donald upon him.

I grimaced internally as I remembered the pained look on his face when he'd collapsed after I'd defeated him in Hollow Bastion's Grand Hall, as I remembered the defeated glimmer in his eyes when I'd pushed the doors to Kingdom Hearts shut only a short time afterwards. I still cringed when I heard his voice within my heart whispering for me to take care of Kairi, his eyes soft and sad, his smile forlorn and hopeless as he knowingly committed veritable suicide by sacrificing himself to darkness without a keyblade to protect himself.

It'd been so very long since I'd seen them last. Riku's grim smile of despair, King Mickey's soft grin of far-fetched hope. But there's always the chance that they're hanging on even as Goofy, Donald and I are, that they're valiantly battling away the darkness that surrounds them.

It was that chance that I clung to, that hope that brought what cheer that stioll could exist despite the hopelessness of the situation to me.

There was still a possibility that I could save them. There was still a possibility that I could see Kairi again.

Those facts kept me going, kept me smiling.

"Well, let's get going," I said with a cheeky grin thrown back at my companions.

They both sighed, Goofy's big nose bowed and Donald's eyes staring with forlorn disdain at the inverted waterfalls that sent their liquid delivery cascading towards the proverbial heavens.

An hour and a half later, we'd finally collapsed at the massive gates that lead to Hollow Bastion's grand interior. Hey, what do you expect? We'd been running, jumping, inevitably falling and retracing our steps, forgetfully taking the wrong elevators and going the wrong way for… um… forget I started saying that.

"Never thought we'd get here," Donald huffed as he flopped on top of me, using my back as his couch.

"Hey," I warningly grunted, prying my nose off the ground I'd collapsed on.

Donald ignored me though, even as Goofy leaned his back on the huge wooden doors and wiped invisible droplets of sweat from his brow and grinned widely.

He fell backwards a few moments later with a yelp as the doors swung easily open. I bolted to my feet, instantly sending Donald onto his face and sprawling on the ground. My keyblade was quickly brought to my hand – even though we'd not seen any Heartless during our entire journey, one can never be too careful – the fact that the stars have been falling was proof enough that they still existed on this side of Kingdom Hearts' doors.

My grip tightened on Ultima Weapon as I slinked towards the door, stepping around Goofy and his Save The King shield. With a worried gulp I stepped into the seeping darkness that flooded the great halls, my long golden keyblade's haft leading my progression.

Moments later I was shielding my eyes with a sharp gasp as the torches that lined the walls and the brazier that hung suspended form the center of the massive entryway's ceiling burst into life, their warm light unexpected but welcome. I pried my hand away from my eyes, barely making out someone in pink walking towards me.

"Aerith?" I asked, my lips spreading into a wide and happy grin.

"Sora, welcome back," she politely greeted as she curtsied prettily before me. "Leon and Cloud are expecting you in the library."

"They're expecting me?" I asked, my brows arching in surprise. "I didn't know our visit was expected at all."

A soft laugh escaped her lips. "We saw the gummi landing. Cid recognized it as yours."

"Cid's here too!" I burst. Well, we'd avoided Hollow Bastion like the plague over these last months. Like I know who's all here.

"Yes," she replied even as she started walking away, leading us towards the massive library. "This used to be a portion of our world before Ansem's acceptance of darkness consumed our light. We all returned here when you sealed Kingdom Hearts."

She laid her hands upon the massive doors to the library, pushing them open with relative ease. Walking into the lofty room, she turned to face us and nodded. "They're upstairs. You know the way?"

"I can find it," I replied with a slight nod. After all, I'd reorganized this entire place last time I'd visited. After spending hours running around swapping books from one shelf to another to get shelves to move and new books to appear, one doesn't easily forget the layout.

My shoes echoed loudly on the floor as I walked past her with a smile, accompanied by the slapping of Donald's webbed feet and Goofy's massive shoes clonking along. It took us no time at all to make it to the stairs.

I grinned when we reached the small study between the bookshelves on the upper level of the library. The first thing that caught my eyes was the tall, lank form of the scarred stoic warrior who'd urged me throughout my time in Traverse Town, still clad in his leather jacket and form-fitting pants with his heavy boots and plethora of belts in their casual circumference about his waist, still wearing his soft white t-shirt tucked into those pants and Griever dangling upon his chest from the chain loosely wrapped about his neck, still wearing his thick black gloves and the straps buckled around his strong forearms. All that was missing was his gunblade – I couldn't imagine him running around in the library with it, anyway, so that didn't surprise me in the slightest. "Leon!" I greeted.

He silently nodded, his soft russet hair brushing over pale cheeks and thick lashes that concealed his eyes.

Well, some things never change, no matter how much time passes. Leon still apparently hadn't gotten any friendlier.

"So he really did arrive," another voice stated from directly behind us.

I gasped in shock, instantly spinning to face whoever it was that just spoke with my keyblade still in my hand. Donald flailed madly with Save The Queen, nearly clubbing me with the staff as he spun, mimicking me. Goofy just turned and grinned.

"It's you! Hiya, Mr. Cloud!" the humanoid dog greeted with an upraised hand, his shield loosely hanging at his side.

The spiky-haired blonde we'd faced so many times in the Coliseum's tournaments nodded before walking past us to stand at Leon's side, his tattered burgundy cloak fluttering dramatically behind him as his boots clicked lightly on the library's tiled floor and his metal banded armor added its own soft music with every move, that huge wrapped sword of his missing as Leon's gunblade was from the ensemble. Arms loosely falling to his sides, he looked at us without a word, his glowing blue eyes seeming to absorb and overpower every last shred of light that dared to touch them.

Hoo boy. Silent nodding in stereo. This was going to be a wonderful meeting.

"So…" I began, arching a brow as I looked at the two stoic warriors standing side by side, Leon with his hands in his leather pants' pockets and Cloud just staring unnervingly at us with his clawed-gloved hand clenched at his side. "Aerith said you wanted to see us?"

"You're here looking for them," Leon bluntly stated, finally opening his gunmetal gray eyes to look at us. "They aren't here."

My shoulders slumped. "Well, I kinda figured that," I sighed. "After all, no Heartless, no open door, right?"

They nodded in synch with one another.

Donald sweatdropped in perfect time with me. Goofy just grinned then politely took over the conversation as I was as lacking for words as our hosts were. "So, uh," he clumbsily began, "we're here to se if there's any clues as to what's goin' on. There're stars blinkin' out again, an' King Mickey told us to find more doors to Kingdom Hearts."

Cloud and Leon looked at one another, steel gray meeting glowing blue for a moment before they both returned their gazes to us. Cloud huffed quietly, his head bowed and his hair rustling with his movement. "Figured that's what brought you. However I don't know what you'd seek here. The door to darkness is still firmly locked."

"However," Leon quietly interjected, "there might very well be another threshold here."

We all stared at him, Cloud included.

"Uh, what'd'ya mean by that?" Goofy asked without hesitation while Donald and I still mulled over the impact behind his statement.

"I mean," Leon began, his hand moving to let his fingers pinch the bridge of his marred nose to fend off whatever headache our questions were beginning to incur within his skull, "that this world can be reached by gummi ships. The barriers are collapsing around it. That is the first indication that something is amiss. Unless a keyhole is open, the world is closed off from all others."

"Until that day when the door to light is opened," Cloud clarified with a nod, "when all worlds will be connected again." Turning to look at his partner in stoicism, he frowned slightly. "Maybe it's not as dark as you suspect.

"Nope, I'm afraid Squall's probably right," a new voice chirped.

"It's Leon," the leather-clad warrior groaned.

We all turned as one. Yuffie waved at us all before leaping with odd grace from the beams overhead and landing beside Leon, placing her hands on her hips and shaking her head.

"If the door to light were open, the walls that divide worlds would vanish and all would be connected. They're still plenty of worlds that aren't connected," she began, her eyes bright as she lifted a hand from her waist to gesture with her rapidly flowing statements. "And that wouldn't account for the falling stars, either."

"Many worlds, connected to darkness. It is the task of the keyblade master to find and lock tight the doors."

I blinked as Leon's quiet voice interrupted the ninja. "Huh?" I intelligently questioned.

"Ansem's research mentioned multiple doors."

"Multiple doors, because there're multiple worlds, right?" I asked, arching a brow.

"That's a fact. But perhaps he was also referring to multiple doors upon each world."

"So you're saying that there could be other doors on each world we can reach by gummi?" I mused.

Leon's simple nod was my answer.

Donald huffed as he looked at both Goofy and myself. "Well, you know what this means," he gruffly snarled.

"Yeah. Might as well start looking now," I stated, my hand tightening on my keyblade's haft.

"Gawrsh, we're gonna hafta wander all over this place again? An' this time, we don't have a clue where to start!" Goofy interjected, scratching his head.

Cloud and Leon looked at one another before nodding.

What the heck? Were they communicating telepathically or something?"

"I'll help you look in the lower passages," Cloud stated, stepping away from the other grim, silent figure in the room. "Leon will check the prints of the castle and see if he can find anything up here."

"You run into trouble, get back here," Leon quietly instructed.

"Hey, we can handle ourselves in a fight," I stated, my face more of a pout than a grim display of courage I'm afraid. "We defeated Ansem, after all!"

"I was talking to him," Leon huffed with a slight flick of his hand towards the blonde that was approaching us.

Cloud snorted, shooting a scathing glare over his shoulder.

Maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I could swear that I saw a slight smile slide across Leon's lips before he turned his attention away from us and seated himself at the desk we were standing by.

"Give me a few minutes to get my sword and we'll be on our way," Cloud grunted, his voice an indignant growl.

Call me crazy. Something's going on at Hollow Bastion that's gone right over my head.

_-tbc-_

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Alright. Editing's a pain in the arse. Hand-typed from the printout from work, so please excuse typos. Reviews are highly appreciated! 

And in the interest of inflating my ego, I shall now merrily gesture towards that 'submit review' feature. Not necessary for continued work – necessary for expediting continued work. After all, I got lots-a-stories goin' right now that cry for attention. I've been procrastinating on some of 'em for over five years. One for an entire decade. (sweatdrop)

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(breaks out Ansem plushie) SUBMIT! (cackle, cough) Pweez? (bats eyelashes) 


	3. Dungeon

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 3  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Dungeon

"Gawrsh, sure is spooky down here!"

I took a casual glance back at the humanoid dog that simpered his proclamation, my eyes hard and uncaring. I refused to let the nervous disposition of two of the three persons I was escorting through the winding caverns of those lands underneath the massive structure that encompassed most of Hollow Bastion get to me.

Still, my hand unconsciously tightened on the leather-wrapped hilt of the base sword of First Tsurugi.

It was, after all, a bit spooky even as the dog had stated.

I'd never veered towards the tunnels that permeated Hollow Bastion's considerable foundation before. I'd never before had a reason to do so. Therefore I was entirely unprepared for the sights that would meet me.

I'm rather embarrassed to note that Sora, the young boy I'd faced in the Coliseum, was more relaxed than I was as we traversed the walkways that sprawled before us. Of course that was due to the fact that he wandered these passageways when they were flooded with Heartless and he was striking towards the door to darkness, but still.

Perhaps it was the lighting or lack thereof that made this area so strange. Everything had a soft blue sheen to it, barely enabling the eyes to see into the permeating darkness. Indeed, if I were to imagine what the world of the Heartless were to look like, this would pretty much be it. Twisting tunnels leading into only god knows what, the way before a person shrouded in shadows until that person gets there.

Perhaps it was the oddity of the environment. Water in which a person doesn't sink, but appears to be fathoms deep? Bubbles you jump into to be transported to other locations? Walls that swivel in and out of your way on a whimsical push of oddly shaped buttons? Rocks that float and move on their own accord? The architect that designed these passages was clearly on something.

Or perhaps it was the feeling that we were going to be ambushed at any moment.

That last reason was the one that put me on edge.

As for the duck that quaked behind me or the dog that jittered nervously at my side, I have no idea. They'd never ventured down here either, so any of those reasons could apply.

"I'm just surprised we haven't seen anything yet," Sora mused quietly, his head bowed a little and disappointment in his eyes.

I knew he wanted to see Heartless. Not because he's the adventuresome kind who wishes to continually battle, but because Heartless would mean that a door was indeed open.

I knew he wanted nothing more than to save his friends and the mouse King. Leon had told me as much.

I'd never really cared about the boy's reasons before, but now perhaps I could begin to relate to them.

All I'd known during our first meeting was that he was my opponent. I knew that Hades wanted him out of the picture, that I was tasked to kill him, that I didn't want to bother staining my sword with his blood because my contract said nothing about slaughtering little kids. I knew after our first battle that he was a lot tougher than he looked, despite his scrawny build and ridiculous looking weapon.

Our second fight in the tournaments saw no real change in my disposition towards him. However, rather than killing him I was simply there to pit my Buster Sword against his keyblade in the rematch he'd offered me. I was a bit miffed when he defeated me then. Especially considering that I'd not gone easy at all on him, that I'd tried my best to keep him from reaching the top rung of the Hercules Cup.

It took all the way until the Hades Cup for me to really start to learn about the boy who was the keyblade's master.

I'd finally met Leon in the lobby of the Coliseum. It seems like so very long ago, even though just a few months have passed since the first time we laid eyes on one another.

He'd suffered a rather humiliating loss to Sora as top seed of the Pegasus Cup, even though he'd fought with Yuffie. He and the ninja were reconsidering signing up for a tournament when Hades Cup started accepting applicants, though apparently they'd quite an argument going on between them.

Doesn't surprise me. Her chipper state and his stoicism don't mesh very well.

Yuffie's a sweet girl, but a bit on the… hyper and squeaky side, shall we say?

I could never describe that first meeting very well. First my eyes were attracted to the pair by Yuffie's voice loudly calling for the satyr who ran the games and her bouncing frame with her flailing limbs trying desperately to gain said satyr's attention. I was surprised to see Yuffie – we'd not seen one another since our world fell to the Heartless, since I'd finally heard from Hades that the one I sought was indeed alive somewhere and he'd assist me in the task of finding him for a few favors in turn – but nothing could prepare me for what I saw next.

My mouth went dry when I first laid eyes on him, my eyes widening slightly. For a few moments I was more than a little stunned.

I'd finally laid eyes on a warrior who might be a match for me, and who showed it unlike the twig-boy with his clown shoes.

He stared back at me, his gunmetal eyes hard as steel and his hand tightening slightly on the hilt of his strange weapon (a cross between a gun and a sword isn't very, how shall we say, conventional) he held casually slung over his shoulder. The hand that rested on his hip lightly drummed his long tapered fingers upon the plethora of belts he wore even as those eyes narrowed slightly, silver flashing across those intense irises, wrinkling the diagonal scar that sliced viciously between them and over the bridge of his nose.

Softening my expression slightly and willing the glow of battle-excited Mako to fade (I'd been glaring as I would at any opponent who stands before me, my own hand tightening on my Buster Sword's hilt which like his blade was slung over my shoulder) I nodded politely.

He nodded back.

The exchange between us was shattered by Yuffie's sudden squeal. "CLOUD!" she burst even as she bounced my way, her arms spread wide and a smile crossing her entire face. She pounced onto my arm before I had a chance to react. "You're here! You're really here! Oh my goodness, wait until I tell her that I finally found you!"

I blinked a few times. "Yuffie," I stated. "… Hello! It's been awhile," I gasped, unable to repress delighted laughter and hug her in return.

"Dang right it has! How've you been? Oh, silly question. I can tell by your eyes that you're the same as ever." She huffed with exasperation. "Well, you'd better get cheery for real! I, the world's greatest ninja, demand it!"

Staring at her, I felt a sweatdrop lightly roll down the side of my face even as I helplessly smiled.

Surprisingly the man who'd accompanied her to the Coliseum spoke. "That's enough, Yuffie."

I looked at him, my eyes widening slightly. I hadn't expected such a… smooth voice.

"Oh, come on, Squall!"

"Leon."

"I haven't seen him in ages!" she finished as if he'd never attempted to correct her.

He just silently looked at her, those shining eyes of his seeming to burn through her bouncy little frame, the silver fading to a crass blue-gray.

Her shoulders slumped. "Oh, fine."

I watched as Yuffie actually backed down for once, then turned an almost appreciative glance towards the stoic man who'd accomplished what I thought would have to be an impossible feat. "You're her partner?" I started, attempting to engage him in some form of conversation.

He'd roused my curiosity. I wanted to know more.

He simply nodded. "Supposedly," he clarified while lifting a hand to the bridge of his nose to pinch it lightly. "This time I might pass. She wanted to come and dragged me with her."

"Yuffie's been like that for as long as I've known her," I said with a nod. "I guess you just get used to it."

He huffed with disbelief, glancing over at the ninja as she bounded towards Phil with a squealed cheer. "Whatever," he grunted before turning his gaze back to me. "You know her well?"

"Pretty much."

"I take it you're Cloud Strife."

I internally scowled. I hated being at a disadvantage when meeting others. Yuffie'd probably already spilled everything she knew about me to this guy. Me, Barrett, Aerith, Cid, Red, Cait Sith, Tifa-

"Yuffie told me about you. Aerith clarified," he stated blandly, interrupting my train of thought.

"Aerith?" I questioned quietly. So, he knew Aerith too, apparently. Interesting.

"Yeah," he said with a slight nod.

I decided to focus on the here and now instead of wonder how Aerith was these days. Mainly, I decided to focus on the man who stood before me in the lobby of the Coliseum and find out anything at all about him. Yuffie'd called him 'Squall.' He'd corrected her with 'Leon.'

Instead of going off of what I'd overheard, I decided that asking the rather cross looking man would be the best approach. "You know my name. Yours?"

"… Leon."

"No last name?" I questioned, arching a brow.

He frowned. "Not anymore," he quietly replied, casting his eyes towards the floor.

He certainly was a bundle of mystery. And he was continuing to draw my curiosity with every enigmatic statement.

Finally I offered him my free hand.

He stared at it quizzically before turning his gaze to my eyes.

"Nice to meet you," I said. "Would you like a different partner for this tournament?"

He stared at me, his blue-gray eyes showing obvious bewilderment at my sudden and very forward proposal.

I was a bit stunned with it as well. What on earth had made me say something like that!

I'd almost collapsed in shock when he'd placed his hand in mine and gave it a soft shake. "Pleasure. Let's see how well we do."

Even though we'd lost to Sora again, we were happy enough with our performance. We'd done as well as we could, I suppose. And he was marvelous with that gunblade. A surprising equal to me.

Leon didn't seem too bitter about our loss, either. It was after we'd dropped a seed that he'd explained that Sora was indeed gaining strength and perhaps someday would have the chance to save his friends.

He'd told me everything he knew about the teenager, every aspect of his sad story that he was aware of.

I'd then found pity for the boy in my heart. He was suffering almost as terribly as I had. Save instead of knowing that the person he was trying to protect had been butchered and striving for revenge as I had, instead of seeking the apparent reincarnation of a person slaughtered in the past, he was attempting to find people who'd been torn away from his grasp by darkness, searching tirelessly for his missing friends while saddled with the fate of the universe by the keyblade's choosing of him as its wielder.

The next thing I knew I almost fell flat on my face.

"You alright?" I heard Goofy's voice boom from beside me, his gloved hand gripping my upper arm tightly.

I scowled as I regained my footing and glared at the rock I'd tripped over. Hmph. Should know better than to reminisce while trudging through winding and treacherous tunnels.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Wasn't watching where I was going," I grumbled.

"I don't blame him for spacing out," Donald quacked behind me. "We haven't seen anything! This is hopeless."

"Yeah," Sora uttered from the point of our little formation. "No Heartless at all. Maybe there really isn't another door."

Straightening my stance, removing myself from Goofy's saving hand, I crossed my arms over my chest and huffed with annoyance. "There has to be something though. Leon's right. This world is connected again. Otherwise you'd never have been able to reach us with your ship."

"But…" Sora trailed off, his face despondent.

I frowned and shrugged, shouldering First Tsunugi's base sword and lightly laying the fingers of my off-hand on the handle of the sheathed hollow-core blade that made the completed weapon's leading edge. "Have some faith. Leon's very rarely mistaken."

"You sure hold him up high, don't'cha?" Goofy observed.

I frowned and turned away.

I could feel my cheeks flushing.

"Ahem. We're not finding anything down here. Let's head back to the library and see if Leon and Yuffie have dug anything up."

I heard Sora laugh lightly with Donald. "Sure thing!"

Gritting my teeth, I grumbled.

What the heck were they trying to insinuate with their giggles? I respected Leon as a fellow warrior, damn it! Just as I protected Aerith as an innocent, as a Cetra in need of my blade.

Maybe if I tell myself that more often, I'll believe it.

The part about Leon, that is.

As Sora and his two friends began the long trek back towards Hollow Bastion's massive gates, I lingered behind, a bit lost in my own thoughts concerning those I was surrounded with these days. My old gathering of companions, those who returned to me despite all odds, and those new presences in my life.

My eyes barely witnessed the skittering Shadow with its glowing gold eyes to my left.

Turning on my heel, my base sword already split open and ready for battle in my right hand and my left ripping the hollow sword from its sheath upon my back, I glowered into the black expanse before me.

Sora and his friends had already rounded the corner, leaving me to face whatever it was on my own. No problem. I didn't need the keyblade master to defend me from Heartless.

I glared coldly at the darkness. Minutes passed.

Nothing emerged. The golden eyes I thought I'd seen were nowhere to be found.

"A figment of my imagination?" I quietly murmured to myself even as I turned away, slowly sliding the hollow sword into its place along the edge of the base sword and locking them together into a single unit, freeing my left hand for one of the two serrated swords that were also crammed into my sheath. Even as I began to walk after the others, I slid sword after sword into place, assembling First Tsurugi into its completed form as I glared into the shadows.

Must have been.

It took me a significantly longer time than it took Sora and his companions to make it back to the library. Approaching the conglomeration that surrounded Leon on the second floor, I leaned the fully assembled First Tsurugi against the bookshelf nearest the stairs and crossed my arms over my chest, my head slightly bowed as I pondered what I thought I'd seen in the shadowy dungeon below Hollow Bastion.

"I see," I barely caught Leon's voice utter. He must have been informed of the supposedly empty state of the caverns.

"Well, I noticed something," Yuffie chirped even as she nodded towards Aerith. "Look to the sky outside of the windows. The third star in the belt is fading."

"What!" Sora exclaimed even as he ran towards the huge reaching windows, barreling down the stairs with reckless abandon to place his bare fingertips on the glass.

I cast my gaze towards the same site, frowning as I observed what Yuffie had proclaimed.

The constellation of the hunter with his impressive belt that glittered directly to our east was indeed sporting a fading star.

"You should hurry, Sora," Aerith's quiet voice urged. "There may be time to save that world."

"Right. We're out of here," Sora proclaimed, his voice vigorous with renewed purpose. "Let's go, guys!"

As the girls lead the trio of saviors out of the library, intent on taking them along the swiftest of passages to their gummi (they obviously needed the help, considering how long it took them to make it to Hollow Bastion from their landing site) and Cid accompanying them to make any repairs they might need to their ship, I walked to Leon's side. My lips remained turned in a frown as I stood beside him, staring at my feet.

"Something's bothering you," Leon observed. "The dungeons weren't as empty as Sora and his friends thought they were?"

I shook my head slowly. "I can't say I saw anything. I thought I saw a Shadow, though."

"Explains the fully assembled sword."

Nodding once, I let my arms fall to my sides. "No door though."

Leon frowned slightly, seating himself on the edge of the desk, his belts clanking with his movement. "Odd. I wonder how it got here."

"Been thinking," I stated as I sat beside him, leaning my head back to stare moodily at the ceiling. "They locked the door to darkness that exists here in Hollow Bastion."

"Yeah."

"But when they locked the door on Destiny Islands, they did it differently from the accounts Sora gave when we were wandering in the tunnels."

"Explain," Leon urged.

"He said he was journeying to find the door to the light, because King Mickey and his friend Riku are trapped in Kingdom Hearts. Not just wandering around like we thought they were."

Leon arched a brow, apparently surprised at my statement.

"They had a keyblade master on the other side of that door," I stated as I rolled my head slowly from side to side, stretching the tense muscles of my neck. "A lock that needed to be locked from both sides. What if every door to darkness is the same?"

Leon's penetrating gaze could be felt as it rested upon me. I didn't need to look to tell he was staring at me, his brain pondering the possible impact behind my statement. "Then," he quietly began, "every lock that has been closed from this side would need a corresponding effort upon the other. A keyblade master in darkness to finish the job Sora began in the land of light." He paused. "you're thinking that Hollow Bastion hasn't received such attention, and that darkness can still seep through the door."

"Yeah," I affirmed as I lifted my head, staring at the window instead of the ceiling for a moment. Turning to face him, I sighed. "It would explain what I saw, and what we failed to find."

"The one door with multiple locks. It could be misinterpreted as multiple doors." Scratching his chin, Leon nodded before lightly laying his hand upon mine. "We'll keep watch on the door. The Heartless you saw could be a singular incident, an individual that lost its way and got separated from its hordes. If the Heartless had truly devoted their attention to Hollow Bastion once again, we would have fallen by now. We don't need to call the keyblade master back quite yet. We can hold it until he returns of his own accord. Agreed?"

I felt my cheeks color slightly even as I laced my fingers with his. "Agreed."

_-tbc-_

* * *

Standard fare – if you liked it, if you hated it, or if you have corrections for me please leave me some feedback. (huggles 'submit review' feature) Heh heh. Submit. That can be sooo obscene, considering how much Ansem yaoi I've read. (drags mind back out of the gutter) 


	4. Door

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 4  
The Heartless – Door

I'd beaten the others to it.

I don't think they even know it still exists.

When the one lock that exists in the world outside of our own is shut, many turn away without studying the door. They don't realize that it's still leaking, that it's still accessible from our side. Once that lock clicks into place, the sound resounding throughout the abysmal depths of our world, the light that pours from its frame vanishes. It takes sharp eyes and dedicated staring to catch the faint twilight glow that slips through the slight cracks in that closed portal, to see the nearly nonexistent glimmer of light that's all but instantly lost in our shadows.

It's harder to find a half-locked door than it is to find those doors that, while unlocked, have never been forced open. Those doors, their keyholes never revealed, are a faint gray shade in our black lands, the untapped light seeping through the very structure of the door itself. Half-locked, the light that seeps through the door is cut off, prevented from ever reaching our eyes.

They weren't staring hard enough. They weren't actively looking. I, on the other hand, was staring for all I was worth. Because I am different, and I have a goal I seek to fulfill.

Or maybe they're afraid. Once a being travels through, it's difficult if not impossible to return owing to the lock on the sided of light.

One-way travel is frightening to most.

I would have been afraid, but I tossed such worry to the proverbial winds long ago. When I first came to the world of the Heartless, I was convinced that I would never return to the light. I was prepared for eternal exile.

I wasn't prepared for assimilation, but that's rather beside the point.

I was a creature of light. I didn't belong in the world of the Heartless, but I came anyway. I don't remember what I was like, but at least I can hold comfort in the fact that I once was such, that I came from a world which was blessed with the touch of light from the sky and colors other than black running their palates over the landscape.

I know I was prepared for my life to find its expiration here in darkness because of my lack of worry at my surroundings. I've never panicked, never troubled myself with searching desperately for light to see by as those newly inducted to our hellish home usually do. At least, I've never done so for as long as my rapidly depleting memory can recall.

I'd found the door and slid through its narrow cracks before anything else could see me.

I'd stepped free of the shadows. I'd stepped into a world of light.

It was so brilliant!

A grand cathedral hall, its ceiling spanning far into the heavens, its walls spread away, untouchable from my location. My black feet strode silently upon a dark burgundy floor, carrying me a few meters away from the orifice I'd just emerged from. Huge braziers lined a far-off hallway that stretched from beyond the end of the staircase I was about to embark upon, reaching for enormous double doors.

It was haunting. It was dim. But it had color and it had light, differentiating it from the world I'd called 'home' for….

For however long it's been since I first entered it.

Turning on my heel, I stared at the door I'd emerged from.

The huge heart-shaped portal was black, lacking any pulse of darkness. Apparently upon this side of the door, it was locked impossibly tight. There was no keyhole remaining to lock, no flaws in the barrier between light and dark.

I was trapped.

I cocked my head slightly, my antennae quivering slightly with the movement.

I wasn't worried.

Turning towards the stairway again, I made my way to that flame-lined passage, to the double doors.

Once I was in front of them, I turned my glowing golden eyes towards the massive structures that blocked my progress.

Something about this seemed so very familiar….

Looking back at the elevated platform I'd just progressed from, I cocked my head again, my clawed fingers twitching slightly.

I faintly seemed to remember this place. The details were hauntingly familiar.

But how, I couldn't recall. What happened here I couldn't begin to recreate.

All I knew was that I'd been here. I'd stood on that platform.

Shaking my head, I flattened myself to the ground and slid underneath the barrier that obstructed my path.

I didn't feel like remaining close to the door to my old world any longer.

Instead, I made my way as a flattened shadow down the walls of the huge room filled with its moving platforms to the dark passages below.

Dodging those who wandered the passages (I fear the spiky-haired blonde might have seen me), I settled in for a long stay.

I had a goal, a purpose.

Maybe a short rest in the safety of a world of light, far removed from the mind-numbing shadows and the hunters that pursued me through the Heartless' worlds' recesses, would give me the opportunity to remember it.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Standard fare – if you liked it, if you hated it, or if you have corrections for me please leave me some feedback. (huggles 'submit review' feature) Submit! (flails with Ansem plushie) 


	5. Schoolhouse

Disclaimer: I in no way own Pete's Dragon or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha. 

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 5  
The Keyblade Master – Schoolhouse

I groaned as I lifted my arms towards the sky, my fingers interlaced with one another even as my eyes gazed at the white puffy clouds that floated innocently by in the crystalline blue sky.

We'd landed entirely in one piece, entirely unnoticed, and entirely….

Yes, under Donald's piloting.

I still couldn't figure out how that duck managed to stick it every time.

We'd managed to land a good mile outside of the town I was now visiting, our gummi laying sheltered in a cave near the crashing waves of the ocean.

It was almost like Destiny Islands.

The bright shining sun gracing the sky, the scent of salt on the breeze, the soft hiss of air escaping its sandy prison once the waters recede back into the oceans from whence they came, the fall of wave upon beach, the cry of seagulls on the wind. All were such strong reminders of home!

I meandered out onto the fisherman's wharf, casting my gaze over the ocean after I'd finished my salutary stretch to the sun. Sitting on the edge of the wooden pier, I sighed and rested my elbows on my knees, my eyes relaxed and enjoying the scene of the infinite blue waters sprawling before me.

Riku used to do this all the time. Out on Destiny Islands, there wasn't a day when he couldn't be found on that small island right off the larger chunk of land we claimed as our main play area with its seaside shack and its half-ship poop-deck erupting from the wooded hills to protrude over the waters. While Tidus, Wakka, Selphi, Kairi and myself entertained ourselves with mock fights, games of tag, hide and go seek, building sandcastles and such other childish but fun nonsense, he was always out on that small island, sitting on the bent papou tree that served its Riku-designated function of 'bench' to perfection. We'd try to get him to join us in the fun, but he'd always wave us off. Soemtimes he'd fight with us but that in of itself was a rarity – I received far more attention than the others when it came to that aspect, I'm afraid; he claimed it was because I had a cute pout that always made him laugh.

Dick head.

But we'd try. We'd try desperately to include him. We – alright, mostly I – thought that Riku was lonely, in need of our companionship, and we were going to give it to him whether he liked it or not.

He always ditched us the moment he could or just denied us his 'holier-than-thou' presence entirely. It was almost to the point that the others started avoiding him. After time they began revering him, thinking him to be untouchable and beyond such normal activities and wants and human urges such as socializing. Well, as for the untouchable part he practically was. None of us managed to beat him unless it was one of his off days – I managed to pound him on one occasion and set the record to an impressive 10 to 2 in my favor, only to find out the next day that he was missing from school because he'd been taken to the doctor's office with an outrageously high fever and the beginnings of pneumonia. And no, he wasn't the one drowning in the icy water to make him sick. That was yours truly.

They treated him like an inhuman creature, above and beyond us entirely.

I always thought it different. He was just….

I know I'm risking his wrath if somehow he found out that this is what I know….

He's rather shy.

He clings to a small gathering that he keeps close to his heart. He concerns himself fully with those he holds dear, sacrificing everything he can to keep them for himself. Everything else is superfluous and beneath maintaining his constant attention on, as he'd put it. In truth I think that people beyond the small group he could put his trust in would force him to expose himself further, to spread his secrets out for the world to see and push him into the uncomfortable spotlight as a human being rather than an undefeatable edifice of perfection.

So he avoided us as a group, leaving us to our beach barbeques and campfires and ghost stories.

He was always on the papou tree, just staring at the waves. Staring as they rolled in and out, their motion governed by celestial bodies and forces beyond our reach.

Maybe he was pondering what lay beyond the waters all that time.

From some of my earliest memories of him, he was always pining to get off Destiny Islands, after all. He always referred to our islands as a 'prison' rather than a 'home.'

I always wondered what was going on at his household to make him so desperate for escape. But that was Riku's private business, so I never delved.

Maybe I should have.

I felt my lips turn with a slight scowl as I watched a few fishermen begin to row back in, their lobster traps and fish nets piteously bare. Every thought that I had of Riku lately lead to miserable recollections of less-than-merry times. Even those times I attempted to recall the games we played, the good times we had, my mind always found itself cascading into the haunting behavior he displayed when around me and me alone back on Destiny Islands or into the horrible set of circumstances that befell us when he was taken by Ansem.

I sighed in dismay. "Ah man," I groaned to myself, lowering my gaze and staring at the water that sloshed lazily against the pier's wooden stilt legs beneath my feet. I was letting my dismal memories get the better of me.

My ears caught the chirp of a girl on the trail.

Was it my imagination, or did she just ask her friend, "Isn't that the boy with the dragon?"

Dragon?

The girl's voice was responded to by another feminine voice saying, "I think so. Let's go see."

Even as I turned to see what the ruckus was about, the first girl quickly said, "Come on!"

My eyes followed them as they ran off to surround a boy who was walking through the town with a tall, stately woman. He was dressed in a gray suit jacket and a floppy hat with shorts and knee-high stockings – I suppose that's typical wear for schoolboys herre. That makes me so happy they didn't have uniform regulations back home!

There was also a conspicuously large empty space behind them. I squinted, focusing on what was going on.

The girl who's voice initially garnered my attention asked the boy, "Are you the boy with the dragon?" to which she was answered, "Yep."

The other girl, bouncing excitedly, asked, "Is it a he-dragon or a she-dragon?"

The red-head in his gray suit snorted out, "You don't name girls Elliott."

"Where is he?" the girl who'd asked the creature's gender squeaked.

"Following me," the boy answered, tilting his head to gesture to the empty space behind him.

I felt my lips stretch into a grin. What a place this town was to have one boy's imagination affect the citizens to such an extent.

Obviously there was nothing following him. I couldn't see anything, anyway.

The girl seemed to share my disbelief. "Elliott the dragon is right there," she huffed, even as a boy who arrived to partake in the discussion noted, "I can't seem to make out his color."

The boy with his older walking companion grinned and shrugged. "Mostly green."

Another inquisitive boy asked, "He's not too big, is he?"

"Regular dragon size," was the response.

I arched a brow as they approached, steadily getting close to the pier I was sitting on, obviously making their way towards the schoolhouse that was nestled cozily by the warehouses and towering mock-mast that marked the town's center. Regular dragon size, huh? And what exactly is that? As large as a Defender, perhaps? The same size as Maleficent once she'd transformed? I internally laughed, my grin my only show of amusement.

"Wow!" the boy who'd asked breathed, obviously impressed, his eyes focused on the empty space behind the boy.

It was then that the woman in her long white dress with her flowing brunette hair finally addressed the boy with his imaginary dragon. "Pete, let's go."

"Gee…" the two boys who'd been questioning the child named 'Pete' sighed, staring into space with the two girls.

Were they seeing something I wasn't? Or was the overactive imagination of 'Pete' just that catching?

Shaking my head, I turned away from the strange phenomenon and instead watched the fishermen who were rowing in, idly kicking my feet back and forth.

I watched with lazy eyes as the lead fisherman of the batch that was rowing in tossed his line to the pier, grimacing as he held his nets and a lobster trap aloft. "I ain't got hardly nothin' to sell," he morosely mourned.

I turned slightly, paying rampant attention to the conversation as a second fisherman, this one on the pier, gruffly snapped, "So, I pulled my nets in, and there weren't a fish in them."

A third piped up, "I just docked. There ain't nothin' in that ocean but water."

Arching a brow, I watched the three men as they grumbled their woes, pondering what was occurring. The fishing grounds had suddenly dried up?

Growing up on a series of islands, I knew that fishing grounds shifted from time to time. However the most experienced of fishermen knew this and would never be caught lamenting a lack of catch. Instead they would just adjust and recast their nets to where the fish had moved to.

Maybe something else was going on to cause these fishermen grief.

This was a world connected to the darkness, after all. We were able to reach it with our gummi ship. We'd never visited this world before, never locked a keyhole. I was confident that somewhere on this world was an open door that needed my keyblade's attention, that Heartless were roaming those lands that had just remained undetected by me and the town's residents.

Passamaquoddy seemed a peaceful enough place, but such strange occurrences….

Could the Heartless be responsible?

The fisherman who was standing on the pier snarled out, "It's real strange, I'm tellin' you. It's like every fish has disappeared. Just suddenly up and disappeared."

The first fisherman to pull in gestured hatefully towards the stretch of land from which the pierce they were docked to erupted. I followed his gesture.

He was pointing accusingly at the boy the woman had called 'Pete' as he growled, "There's the cause of it. That kid Pete. From the day he come to town, the fishin' turned sour."

Well, they weren't blaming the Heartless. Rather they were blaming a boy. They had quite a different idea for the cause of their dilemma. An almost laughable one at that, too.

Of course, though, if I were an outsider who'd never interacted with the Heartless I would find it laughable that black shadowy creatures could randomly appear and make bad things happen. Maybe their belief in the boy's tale wasn't so laughable from their point of view.

Chewing on my lip, I turned slightly as a new voice entered the fray.

"Don't be ridiculous," the woman in white that was escorting the dragon-eading boy down the road snorted.

"It's that crazy dragon talk of his!" the fisherman in his boat bit, slapping his hand down on the bench of his small boat for emphasis.

The man on the pier whirled to face the woman and her young ward, all but shouting, "That kid's been nothin' but bad luck wherever he goes!" I watched with wide eyes, hoping this wouldn't come to violence.

If it did, there'd be nothing to stop me from defending the woman and the boy Pete. I know we're not supposed to interfere in the affairs of worlds while we quest to stop the invasion of the Heartless, but no one attacks a woman and a little boy. If they did, they'd find out how much a keyblade can hurt!

The woman who was now the focus of the men's anger snapped back, her voice hard and unyielding, "You're a bunch of superstitious ding-gongs! You know the fishing grounds shift from time to time!"

The boy brightly suggested, "Elliott will make the fish come back!"

I resisted the urge to slap my head.

The third fisherman in the fray grumbled, apparently just as impressed with his proclamation as I was, "There he goes. Talkin' dragons again."

The man in his boat snorted, "Hey kid, there ain't no room in this town for a dragon. And there ain' no room in this town for jinxes like you neither."

My shoes made it to the pier. I was instantly on my feet, my fingers of my right hand twitching, my heart ready to bring the keyblade instantly to my hand. I slipped my left hand into my jumper's pocket for a second, toying with the keychains there – Ultima Weapon, the chain I had attached to the blade at the moment, would be far too much for these men. It might actually severely hurt or perhaps even kill someone. I gripped the familiar feeling Kingdom Keychain with its form in the shape of the King's seal. After all, they would need nothing more than a thorough beating to teach them not to harass women and small kids.

The woman who escorted Pete, in total disregard for the fact that I was all but ready to bolt to her side and defend her, just crossed her arms in defiance of the hateful men before her. "If there's room enough for a chowder-head like you, there's more than enough room for a dragon," she huffed in disbelief.

I stared as the men did, watching as she gathered the town's children together, preaching to them about love and acceptance, proclaiming that there is indeed room for everyone in this world if everyone makes some room. A simple yet profound lesson. The men who were on the verge of bursting into action against the woman and her young ward slowly relaxed, allowing me to come to ease as well. I sighed as I pulled my left hand out of my pocket, letting my Kingdom Keychain drop back to rest amongst the plethora of chains I'd gathered throughout my journeys.

As her lesson wrapped up, the school bell rang and the children who'd been playing on the massive mast that stood in the town's center ran to the schoolhouse for their daily lessons. The possible confrontation had been dissolved entirely as the woman and her ward went to speak with the stingy looking woman who likely headed the small schoolhouse. My intervention certainly wasn't needed anymore.

Returning to my seat, I smiled as I resumed watching the waves.

Dragons, drying fishing grounds and the Heartless all seemed a million miles away as the water slowly rolled under the high and bright sun.

I knew I had a purpose on this world. After all, it was fading. Heartless were invading somewhere. I had to hunt them down, find out where they were leaking to this world from, discover what area contained the rip between Kingdom Hearts and this world. I could then seal it, saving this world – and perhaps get the opportunity to find out the fate of my best friend and Donald and Goofy's King.

Resting my elbows on my knees and my chin in the palms of my hands, I closed my eyes. It was a big task – I didn't really know where to begin looking. I hadn't seen a single Heartless yet. But this world was reachable by gummi, so it was being invaded somewhere. I had focused on this town – really, it was the only real place to search. The keyhole had to be here.

It wasn't until the school's bell began ringing wildly some time later that I jumped once again to my feet, my eyes wide. That wasn't a sound I was expecting.

My eyes about rolled out of my head as I laid my gaze on the bell. It was ringing on its own!

The boy with the red hair, Pete, burst out of the front door of the school. "Elliott, stop it! The bell's not supposed to ring until recess!" he screamed before leaping onto the rope, trying to stop it from ringing violently. It continued to go, whatever it was that was wrenching on the rope drawing him off of his feet with each pull.

I started running towards the school, intending to help the boy. He was obviously having trouble.

The moment I entered the town's center, the school's stalwart teacher burst from the interior of the small building, looking with aghast horror at Pete. "You, stop it!" she shouted.

"I'm not doing anything!" I heard Pete's voice defiantly shout.

"Lies, lies, lies! It's the knuckle breaker for you! Three for lying, and three for whom the bell tolls!" she cried, grabbing Pete by the arm and dragging him inside the schoolhouse.

I was still staring with unabashed shock.

The bell was ringing on its own!

And the teacher was going to use a 'knuckle breaker'?

I scratched the back of my head, staring at the school – then jumped nearly a foot in the air as I heard a sudden growl.

Suddenly the sides of the school exploded!

Screams filled the air even as I instantly formed Ultima Weapon, not bothering to change out the keychain. Whatever this was, I was going to take no chances. It just took out the side of a building, for crying out loud! And I didn't even see what it was!

The bell rolled past me even as I charged the school. I stumbled to a stop, my eyes huge as I watched it being dragged by something strong and invisible through the town center.

Moments later it was thrown unceremoniously into the sea. A great gust of wind blasted my hair away from my face. I heard the swoop of leathery wings beating the air, a sound I instantly recognized from all of my dealings with Air Pirates and Air Soldiers and Wyverns on my journeys. Something invisible was flying away.

I stood, dumbstruck, my keyblade hanging loosely in my fingers as I stared towards the sea where the bell had been carelessly tossed.

I couldn't believe it!

Turning back to the school, my eyes refused to relax from their enlarged state.

Very clearly visible was the shape of a dragon bursting through one wall. A very similarly shaped hole penetrated the other side of the school, marking the entry and exit of the rampaging creature.

There really was a dragon!

I stared as the red-haired boy walked morosely from the school, surrounded once again by curious children. He hadn't been kidding. He did have a dragon as a friend!

And if I'd read the interaction correctly, the dragon was the boy's protector. Rubbing the back of my head, I felt my lips turn with a frown.

Passamaquoddy had just suddenly jumped from 'cozy, quiet little town' to 'site of odd occurrences that can surprise even the Keyblade Master.' Shaking my head, I willed the keyblade away.

It took me a few minutes to finally approach the boy myself, as I waited for his curious crowd to leave him be. Walking cautiously towards him, I put my most cheerful and inviting grin on my lips – the one Riku could never resist, no matter how foul of a mood he was in, and always smiled back to. "Hi," I greeted, lifting a hand to wave.

The dragon-befriended boy blinked before smiling faintly at me. "Hi," he replied.

"So, there really is a dragon, huh?" I questioned, turning my gaze towards the school.

"Elliott," he responded. "I can't believe he made so much trouble! I know-"

"He was just trying to defend you," I finished up, my grin still in place. "That's quite a friend you've got."

"I suppose," he answered.

"You shouldn't be angry with him," I softly said, my grin fading slightly. "Friends do crazy things when their friends are in danger. Trust me on that one – he probably couldn't help it. In fact, if I were a dragon with the power to go through a wall, I'd probably do the same thing."

"You think so?"

"Know so! In fact, I'm doing pretty crazy things trying to help a friend of mine right now," I confessed, my grin instantly back and sheepish as heck, a light blush touching my cheeks as I rubbed the back of my head. "Eh heh. Haven't introduced myself. My name's Sora."

The boy flashed a bright smile, offering his hand. "I'm Pete. Nice to meet you, Sora."

Shaking his hand, I laughed brightly. "So anyway, that's really cool. How did you meet?"

We began walking together, him merrily recalling how he came to meet the invisible beast that protected him. As we chatted, I noted that we were leaving town.

He paused his tale right as he was beginning to talk about people called the 'Gogans' to look at me. "Oh, we're leaving town. Don't you have somewhere else to be?"

"Nah," I truthfully replied. "I'm just a visitor here, actually. Just arrived today."

"Where are you staying?" he asked, cocking his head slightly.

"There's this cave system down by the harbor near the lighthouse. Our… boat is down there."

His eyes sprang wide open. "You're staying there? But that's where Elliott's staying!"

I paled slightly.

That dragon was staying in the same cave system we'd hidden the gummi in?

Oh boy.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Like it? Hate it? Corrections needed? Tell me! (lobs Ansem plushie at monitor – as it hits, it barks out "SUBMIT!") 


	6. Shot

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 6  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Shot

Three days.

Three long days.

Three long, tedious days.

That's the amount f time that'd passed since Sora and his gathering left our company to fly to the fading star in the sky. Since that time, since my excursion into the bowels of Hollow Bastion, the imagined sight of golden eyes in the shadows had haunted my dreams.

There was something about that sight that continued to put me on edge. Leon's acceptance of the possibility of leakage through the door that existed in Hollow Bastion's Grand Cathedral didn't make my anxiety any less substantial.

Sora had regaled me in the tale of how he had closed the door to Kingdom Hearts during our travels through the winding passages that permeate Hollow Bastion's foundation. He'd spoken of the End of the World, an eerie land of dead worlds floating in a stagnant sea of nothing, of plunging chasms that terminated in increasingly decayed remains of worlds crushed and hearts exterminated. He talked about how he came across an increasingly familiar door in that darkness, and how once he'd stepped through he found himself upon his home island. How his best friend was already there, his voice deep and sour, its light tone gone and overridden by the booming strength of the man who possessed his frame.

The young keyblade master had sniffed as he explained how he felt when his friend's figure had been cast completely aside, when Ansem took his true form and glowered at him with his glowing gold eyes and his vicious pearly sneer. He'd described the horror of the battles, the flailing against the shadowy guardian that protected the seeker of darkness, the envelopment of him and his two companions by complete darkness and the battle against Ansem and his huge guardian in the shadow of Kingdom Hearts' massive doors.

I sighed, resting my chin in the palm of my hand and glowering at the window. I couldn't help but remember his sighs and his continual rubbing of his gloved palms upon his cheeks, trying to hide any trace of tear trails as he told me about how he and his friends Donald and Goofy put their backs to the huge doors to Kingdom Hearts' interior, how they had felt no hope when they noticed the waves of Heartless making their way rapidly towards the cracked-open orifice. His voice was mournful as he mumbled the conclusion of his tale, about his friend appearing from the interior of that dark Kingdom and grabbing the door from the inside, telling Sora that they could do it together and pulling with all of his might. His voice cracked when he spoke of King Mickey appearing in the depths of darkness, his keyblade radiant and his voice cheerful as he told Sora that now they would close the door for good.

Pressing my fingers lightly on my cheek, I tapped out an idle melody of the desk that I sat before. The boy was torn about his locking of the door to Kingdom Hearts – it was a task he was destined to accomplish, but by meeting the expectations of fate he had sealed himself from one of the friends he'd been trying so desperately to save. A sad fate. Even I'll acknowledge that.

But the difference between his locking of the door of Destiny Islands and the locking of Hollow Bastion's door were what was mostly on my mind's forefront. His sad tale took no precedence over that.

They locked that door from both sides. Our own was only locked from our side.

Leon thought that the singular securing of a possible double-sided lock would permit the Heartless access to our world if they chose to come through.

The sight of golden eyes seemed to confirm that – if it wasn't my own overactive imagination that conjured that image, that is.

I still wasn't quite so certain of what I'd seen down there.

Leon supported my belief that I had indeed seen a Heartless. He placed such belief in my words that for the last three days he'd been venturing into the foundation of Hollow Bastion himself, his gunblade slung over his shoulder and his gunmetal eyes hard and ready for adventure.

I went with him the first day. The second day he left before I'd risen from my bed. The third, I went instead to look at those pages of Ansem's report that Sora had left at Hollow Bastion, trying to discern the meaning behind the madman's ramblings and his reasons for admitting the Heartless to the worlds. My thoughts were that if I came to understand what Ansem discovered, we could discover the true way to undo what he'd done and permanently seal ourselves away from the Heartless.

However it was that the seeker of darkness had damaged those barriers that held the Heartless at bay, he'd done so to such an extent that I was doubting even the power of paired keyblades could ever be able to restore them.

Letting my hand slip from my cheek and lifting my chin from my palm, I stared down at the desk I sat at and the book that lay sprawled open before me, my eyes glazed and tired. I'd been looking at the blasted thing all morning and had yet to see anything of true interest. Of course, though, it was the seventh book I'd tried to pour through that morning. It wasn't that it didn't have any pertinent information in it – it was just really, really damned dull.

Aerith appeared at the top of the stairs, another book in her hands. She approached me with a gentle smile spread across her lips. I greeted her with a like gesture.

"I found another reference to the Shadow World. Azel is quite an informative collection, from what I've discerned. Maybe this will help, Cloud."

"Thanks, Aerith," I muttered with a nod, my smile still upon my lips as she set the book before me on the desk and slipped behind me, laying her hands upon my shoulders. Leaning back into her comforting touch, I sighed. "I almost feel that this is a hopeless task. The principle makes sense – discover what Ansem learned and figure out how he'd damaged the barriers that held the Heartless back to learn what we can do to correct the problem, but…."

"You don't know where he began, so you can't begin to see how to follow the path he took?" she finished, her voice light and airy as she began to lightly rub my shoulders.

I groaned as she continued to kneed my tense muscles. "Mm hm," I mindlessly agreed, my eyes drifting shut. "It's rather difficult to follow a path when you can't find the mouth to it."

"Quite a dilemma," she agreed with a soft laugh. "Maybe you're trying too hard."

"Trying to hard?" I repeated, cracking open on eye to look at her.

"You and Leon. You worry too much. You two are so similar in that aspect. Many other aspects too, but that one most especially."

I huffed quietly, turning my face away from her. "I think you and Yuffie worry too little. The Heartless can still come through the door. We have to figure out how to stop them."

She laughed quietly, stopping her massage and instead playing with my earrings. "They haven't bothered us yet. Maybe we should count the leakage of the door as a blessing. It allows us to see Sora and his friends again."

I snorted. "But they're still a threat."

"So silly," she chuckled. "Or is it because Leon's so concerned that you're concerned as well?"

Shutting my eyes tight, I bowed my head towards the desk. "That's not it."

"You're certain?"

"Positive!" I nearly snapped. What was she trying to insinuate?

I heard laughter from my left. Groaning, I turned my head slightly, opening my eyes a bit to glare at Yuffie.

She just grinned from her previously unnoticed seat atop the bookshelf to my side, slipping my clawed glove onto her hand and flexing her fingers.

Wait a second….

"Yuffie!" I groaned, holding my head in my now gloveless left hand. "Why?"

"Because you were so distracted," she giggled lightly before hopping off the bookshelf and tossing my glove to me. I caught it with a scowl marking my lips. She ignored my irritation and instead walked to Aerith's side. "So he's pounding his head against the proverbial wall just like Squally, huh?"

"Yep," the woman behind me confirmed even as she returned her hands to my shoulders and began to massage them again, lulling me back into an eased comfort. "They're so funny like that."

I groaned quietly, both in enjoyment of the attention I was receiving and in annoyance.

Yuffie just laughed, shaking her head before yanking one of Aerith's hands away from my frame, interrupting her barely begun neck massage. "Come on. Cid's got lunch ready. You coming, Cloud?"

"…. No. I've got to continue this. After all, Aerith just got me a new book to look over."

"Suit yourself," she sighed.

"Have fun, Cloud," Aerith said merrily as she patted my shoulder before leaving with Yuffie.

As silence fell over the library I dedicatedly returned my eyes to the book, allowing my brain to slowly absorb the information that was scrawled there. It was all pertinent to my personal mission of understanding the twisted set of Ansem's mind, speaking of the Heartless' quest to bring their dark Kingdom all light, absorbing the worlds' free hearts so they might fill their own lacking voids. It spoke of the hypothetical creation of the realm we know as Kingdom hearts.

It was….

Dull.

Very, very dull.

My eyes felt like they were glazing over as I continued to stare at the same sentence for minutes on end. Blah blah blah, created from the darkness in people's hearts, blah blah blah.

I stared out the window, returning my chin to my right palm, tapping idle tunes on the desk. The skey was bright and blue. Puffy clouds were rolling lazily by.

Hmm hm hmm hm hmm hm hmm….

Darkness consuming the worlds because of the people there letting it consume them, la la la. The window was infinitely more interesting.

Hm hmm hm hmm hm hmmmmmmmm….

"Em I see, kay e why, em oh you es e. Mickey Mouse…."

I heard a rough voice harrumph at my side. Startled out of my wits, I nearly sprang from my chair as I turned to see who had snuck up on me.

"Yuffie was right. You are incredibly distracted. Are you done with that book?"

I snorted at the huge red creature at my side, ignoring the mirth in his single remaining eye and the playful twitch of his flame-tipped tail. I flipped the page. "No. I'm still looking over this."

"Then what did that last page say?" Red XIII said, his elongated muzzle's lips twisting into a grin.

"That… darkness in people's hearts absorbs worlds…?"

A snort through his nose accompanied a paw being roughly slapped onto the page. Red XIII nudged me with his muzzle. "Out of the chair."

"Why?"

"Because you're not paying attention to anything you're doing. You clearly lost interest in this, so out. Go eat lunch."

"I'm fine," I tried to retort. I'd discussed this idea with Leon last night and he thought it was a good one. I intended on seeing it complete.

Red XIII obviously had other ideas. Arching a brow, shaking his mane, he snickered outright at me. "Then obviously you were paying attention to the fact that the last page you flipped past was describing methods to penetrate the barrier between light and dark using life energy?"

I blinked.

"Go."

Bowing my head, accepting the defeat I was being handed by the dull writing in the texts before me, I rose from my seat. As I tromped down the stairs, I glanced back to see Red XIII hopping into my chair, his tail flickering casually over the armrest and his forepaws resting on the desk upon either side of the book. Flipping back to the beginning of the book by lifting the front cover delicately between his sharp fangs, he hummed and began reading, nearly pressing his large wet nose to the pages.

Leaving the library, I instead decided that following my nose to the scent of lunch was my goal for the day. I'd obviously been replaced in the library.

Pushing the door to the kitchen open, I made my way to the small table that was set near the refrigerator. Almost salivating as the smell of fresh udon met my nose, I pulled a chair and seated myself before a steaming bowl. Quickly grabbing a pair of hot dinner rolls from the platter that had been set in the table's center and putting them onto the empty plate that sat beside the bowl I'd claimed, I removed the napkin that was stuffed beside the plate and spread it on my lap.

"Nice t'see you," Cid grunted from his place by the small stove on the other side of the fridge. He quickly wiped his hands off on the grubby apron he wore which proclaimed in loud pink lettering for the reader to 'Kiss the Cook.' I think that was a present from Aerith, but as I wasn't with this gathering last holiday season I can't be certain. Grabbing another bowl, he shuffled lazily towards the table, his cigarette dangling between his lips and the smoke from its tip snaking its way towards the ceiling. Sitting across from me, he grinned before sweeping his thumb past his nose to wipe it clean and nodding. "Thought the library swallowed ya, kid. Find anything interesting?"

"Not really. Red took over," I said quietly, picking up the chopsticks that sat beside my bowl and fishing a chunk of tofu from the udon. Sticking it in my mouth I chewed idly, closing my eyes.

"Got bored, huh? I got'cha. I'd get bored looking at that shit, too. What possessed you to try something so damned stupid in the first place?"

I huffed lightly through my nose. "It's a pretty sound concept. If we can discover what Ansem did-"

"We can repair the damage, yeah, yeah. What the fuck ever. But what possessed you to do it? That's somethin' I'd leave to Red."

Frowning, I shrugged. "Leon thought it'd be a good idea."

"So you volunteered?" a voice to my right chirped lightly.

Looking over, I arched a brow.

Yuffie smiled brightly as she shuffled her dinner rolls that were firmly stabbed on the ends of her chopsticks around the table. Humming a show tune she kicked them like feet, proverbially dancing with the chunks of bread.

Reaching for my chopsticks, I scowled.

"Hand them over."

She laughed merrily as she handed the chopstick legs complete with my pierced dinner roll feet over to me. "So, Cloudster, Leon came up with that idea?"

"No. I did. He agreed with me that it might turn something up."

"Oh really? You're not usually the type to go for research. Like Cid said, that's more of Red's territory than anything. Or Leon's – he's been like that since I first got to know him. Must be that SeeD training or something; follow orders to perfection, but when orders aren't given try to educate yourself about the situation, blah blah blah. But like I was saying, not you. You're the one to charge in without thinking and get your ass kicked if it weren't for having the world's greatest ninja at your side! Trying to impress him or something? Show that you really have a brain?" Yuffie giggled, her lips curling in a huge smile.

I grunted noncommittally.

A shuffle to my left and a flash of pink told me that Aerith had arrived. How I'd managed to beat the girls to lunch when they'd left before me was a mystery. Turning slightly, I arched a brow. "What took you?"

"Yuffie and I were talking about stuff," Aerith said slyly, a smile gracing her lips even as she lifted her chopsticks from their place on the table.

"Stuff?" I mouthed. That was the most muddled answer to a question I'd received yet.

"Yes. Stuff. Stuff that we girls are privy to, that you boys don't need to hear," Aerith clarified even as she stirred her udon.

Cid snorted at her, his eyebrows arching and his eyes squinting. "Girl, what the hell're you talkin' about?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm certain you already know," the flower girl said with a bright smile.

I stared, completely lost, stuffing noodles into my mouth.

Yuffie cleared her throat. "You didn't answer my question, Cloud."

"I don't have to," I scowled. "My reasons behind my ideas aren't for your scrutiny.

I barely caught the sight of Aerith lightly tapping the tips of her chopsticks together, quirking a brow at Yuffie.;

The 'world's greatest ninja' nearly spit her soup across the table and burst into laughter, burying her face in her hands after she dropped her chopsticks into her lap.

Cid scoffed too, nearly swallowing his cigarette and choking on the huge lungful of smoke he'd inadvertently inhaled without planning to do so.

I blinked.

What the hell…?

Aerith smiled innocently before holding her chopsticks properly and fishing a good helping of noodles from her bowl. Nodding at Cid, she giggled prettily and said, "I told you that you already knew."

Cid held his head and groaned in dismay. "Yeah, I know girlie. I figured it out. Just don't do that shit at the table! You damned near lost me my cigarette with that crap!"

Yuffie was still laughing outright before she whimpered her apologies and wiped tears of mirth from her eyes.

"What?" I asked.

The table burst into laughter again.

Alright, obviously I was the butt of some joke. And I didn't appreciate it.

Snorting, I rose from the table. "Fine. Whatever."

They were still laughing as I left the room.

I tried returning to the library – Red XIII refused to remove himself from my seat, giving me a blasé stare and telling me to take myself elsewhere; the research I was planning on doing was getting done without my presence, and much more effectively. Instead of remaining I chose instead to sit outside, taking First Tsurugi with me out of habit – it always came with me whenever I ventured from Hollow Bastion's interior.

It was a short series of wing-assisted hops to the top of one of the rather pointless pillars that rose before the enormous gates that lead to Hollow Bastion's entrance hall. Sitting cross-legged atop the seat I'd chosen, I rested my elbow on my knees and my chin in my palm once more, relaxing as I watched the sun slowly slide into the haze-flooded distance. Night was falling.

The soft mist that swirled from the top of the inverted waterfalls eventually swallowed the glistening orb of the day's star, allowing only its wan orange and pink rays to flit from the lands beyond across our sky, highlighting the streaming clouds that spanned the darkening blue that hung above me. A few birds chirped brightly from the multitudes of crevices that proliferated the walls of the huge fortification my friends called home – that very place that, far in my distant memories, seemed to be familiar – to proclaim their roosts for the night.

All in all, it was incredibly peaceful. The soft rumble of water in the distance, the quiet songs of birds, the whisper of wind playing over the landscape were a music to lull the senses into the deepest state of calm imaginable. Closing my eyes, I allowed myself to be absorbed by the quiet magnitude of my surroundings, relaxing completely and letting my mind wander.

My lips scowled as I recalled Yuffie and Aerith jesting continually about my friendship with Leon. What were they seeing in my actions towards him? I respect him. Completely. He is a warrior of my equal. He is an intelligent human being. He has skill that can't be denied. And he's good looking.

Scratch that last one.

Rubbing my forehead, I grumbled at myself. So my… eh… experiences with Mukki at the Honey Bee Inn raised some questions about my… preferences. I never thought that Aerith would share those horror stories – especially not with Yuffie.

Oh God. Did they think that I…?

I grimaced as I felt my cheeks flush brilliantly, the heat obvious as the cool wind brushed over my skin.

So Leon and I have been… familiar since the tournaments at the Coliseum. He's held my hand from time to time. He's gentle that way. With people. Well, with me.

Taking a deep breath, I fought valiantly to restore my focus on my surroundings.

Once I'd calmed my racing heart and my flushed cheeks, I sighed and leaned back, my hands resting on the pillar's top behind me. My eyes slipped shut once again.

My heart nearly burst from my chest as I heard the familiar sound of an explosive shot from a gunblade roar from the passages below.

Without hesitation, I grabbed the filled scabbard containing the six parts of First Tsurugi. Wrenching the base sword free even as I slung the remainder on my back I vaulted from my seat.

_-tbc-_

* * *

A/N 2: I know that there're probably gripes about the humor. Sorry, but I found much of FF7 pretty damned humorous. The dancing around with the chocobos, Cait Sith, Wall Market, Shera, the date with Barret, et cetera. The game actually had a bit of a lighter side to it once you bashed through the plot. So there. Besides, I like picking on the blonde unicorn. (cackle) Urm, sorry all of you KH-only people. You don't know what Cloud looked like in his craptastic polygons, neh? And you never got to experience just how foul-mouthed Cid actually is. They took away not only his cigarettes, but his colorful method of speech! Damn you, Disney! Ah, and one thing – no whining that Cloud only has one visible earring. The other side of his head is covered with his crappy hair. No matter how many times I stepped frame-by-frame through Advent Children, I never got a decent shot of his right earlobe. So until I'm proven wrong with a screenshot, I'm happily assuming that he has both ears pierced. At least Squally's easy – the game designers showed us both sides of his head quite clearly. Only his left ear carries jewelry. Feh.

* * *

Same as always, if you have suggestions, praise or gripes please embrace the great Ansem plushie. (squeezes her plushie so it squeaks out 'Submit!') 


	7. Emblem

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 7  
The Heartless – Emblem

I'd run through the shadows for….

I don't know how long.

I just ran.

He was after me.

The one in robes who's been following me for as long as my mind recalls. He stares at me, he studies me. He watches me at the doors.

Dressed all in black, with long brown hair that cascades down either side of his face in soft waves and falls down to his waist along his back. A member of….

Of something.

I don't remember.

But he's always shown interest in me because I'm not like the others.

All I know is that I can't trust him. I can't depend on him. I can't let him catch me. So I ran.

Through the bowels of the fortification I was at, I ran for all I was worth, melding with the shadows and slipping through every crevice I could find. For quite some time I was unseen – the party that was traveling through the passages I now inhabit spotted me, but that was it. I thought I'd lost the tall man in his black robes.

But then he saw me.

With his spiked shield, he approached.

I ran, but I was trapped – there was nowhere for me to hide. No rocks to squeeze between, no walls to shimmy along. Everything was water. I was even standing on it.

How, I didn't understand. But I was. There was no escape.

I stared at him with wide eyes as he approached. His long lips were curved into a manic smile. He was speaking to me – I couldn't understand him.

I would have scowled in frustration if I had lips. I knew that, at one time, I could understand. Had my mind so truly faded? Had my heart so completely lost itself that I could no longer comprehend a human's speech?

I bolted towards the nearest outcrop of rocks, intending to reach some surface that I could compress myself against.

I never got that far. His gloved hand found my throat before I could make it five steps.

I flailed in his strong grasp, reaching for his arms with my claws.

He tightened his grip.

It's a damned good thing I have no real reason to breath. Still, I was panicking. I couldn't escape. He had me. He had captured me! The man from those times beyond what my fading mind could recall, who's always been a frightening aspect of my nightmarish mental wanderings, had me in his possession.

I froze as I heard another voice shout. I stared.

Another person had arrived, standing on the shore of the watery area by one of the crystal that calls the elevators I witnessed the other party using. I didn't recognize this person.

He was speaking with the man who held me in his hand. His tone was cross. He was scowling.

The man who had me captured laughed, his voice light and carefree. He said something in reply.

I squirmed helplessly.

The man who'd come across my dilemma raised the long weapon in his right hand. I was suddenly afraid – after all, I was a Heartless. What if his purpose was to destroy me?

My robed captor raised his empty hand towards the heavens. A stream of light shot from his fingertips towards the sky.

We all looked up as one.

A huge emblem was circling at the base of the fortress that made up our sky, surrounded by the fading sun's light and seeming to pulse with its own energy.

Suddenly, light burst from the emblem's center!

Streaming down like a lightening bolt, it streaked for the shore, illuminating the man who'd come and raised his weapon towards myself and the robed man who had me in his clutches. Something in the ray of light was flying down so quickly I could barely see it.

The man in the light column's base gasped, his eyes huge, before he hastily lifted his weapon. It recoiled violently in his hand, blood flying from the struck being that received the blade's point in its limb, the sudden shockwave that tore the delivered wound wide accompanied by a horribly explosive bang.

A loud scrunch of metal tearing through tissue rang through the air, followed a mere fraction of a second afterward by the grating of the assaulting sword embedding itself into rock.

As hot blood splattered on the ground and ran viscously down the blade that was driven through the man who'd come upon myself and my robed captor, as the weapon that had struck the black beast that burst from the sky clattered metallically to the ground, the being that had erupted from the emblem flexed a wounded, oddly singular black wing.

I watched with horrified eyes as bloodied black feathers slowly drifted to the ground.

_-tbc-_

* * *

A/N 2: To clear any thoughts that I might be smoking crack, the first time I ever unlocked and tossed Sora into the Platinum Tournament my first thought was 'Cool! It's the freaking Bahamut summon from FFX! Am I going to fight Bahamut? Sweet!' after which I was screaming like a spanked bitch when Sephiroth stood up and smirked. Then I died. I died many times, actually, before I figured out a decent strategy to get a 48th level wanker in clown shoes to win that battle. But that's beside the point. Anyway, the intro of him in KH1 reminded me a lot of a summon, hence the conjecture here. Heh heh. 

And if I shocked you by revealing that the guy with one wing, black feathers and the freaking Sword of Doom™ is Sephy, shame on you! Go flog yourself with a wet noodle! That should've been obvious enough. Feh!

* * *

Same as always, if you have suggestions, praise or gripes please embrace the great Ansem plushie. Pull his string. He likes it. (yank. Blinks as it squeaks out 'COME GUARDIAN!') Let me try that again. (yank. 'SUBMIT!') 


	8. Plot

Disclaimer: I in no way own Pete's Dragon or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 8  
The Keyblade Master – Plot

I couldn't help but be more than a little apprehensive as I approached the cave.

After all, it was occupied.

Not just by us, either. There was the dragon.

As impossible as it seemed, there really was a dragon. The busted sides of Passamaquoddy's schoolhouse stood in testimony to that fact.

Narrowing my eyes, I called my keyblade to my hands. I let my fingers tighten their grip on Ultima Weapon, taking solace in the cool feel of metal in my palm.

A shaky breath escaped me. I reached into my pocket, sorting through my keychains.

After all, this creature was a protector. It was a crature of good, who's sole purpose was to defend the boy Pete that I'd met earlier that day from hardship. It wasn't a Heartless, no beast to be destroyed.

I pulled the Spellbinder keychain from my pocket. The keyblade wasn't overly powerful for physical attacks – more potent, to be certain, than Kingdom Keyblade, but this was a potent creature. I was certain it wouldn't feel anything from being clonked with the Kingdom Keyblade if I had to defend myself. Spellbinder wasn't much more powerful physically, but it did give me a significant boost with my magic – if nothing else, I could use its additional power for a defensive Aeroga spell.

With a resolute sigh, I unclipped the Ultima Weapon keychain, watching with soft eyes as the keyblade in my hand wavered and waned, its delicate lines fading and twisting. It was a strange thing to watch – the product of my heart becoming translucent and unreal, its hard metallic feel lost to a soft ethereal touch, its entire presence ghost-like and faint. The hilt twisted itself from its delicately woven Ultima Weapon design, becoming plain and square and faintly gold. The blade lost its swept tendrils, shrinking from its massive size into a simple silver form, wavering and fading.

Clipping on Spellblinder, taking comfort as the blade instantly flashed to reality once again as the short, blue blade I'd barely used during my journey in a blinding burst of white light, I smiled. "Alright," I said to myself, turning to face the cave's entrance again.

"Time to go get Donald and Goofy."

After all, they'd seen when we'd drifted over Passamaquoddy while Donald was searching for a good landing spot for the gummi that the town we were to explore was filled with nothing but ordinary humans like myself. Even I stood out quite horribly, my clothing being so different than everyone else's. As a result, my friends volunteered to remain at the gummi and use its extraordinarily powerful radar system to locate any Heartless that might pop up.

And now they were in the gummi, situated in a cave that was occupied by a dragon.

Swallowing my fear, I entered the dark recesses of the cave.

"Hello?" I cautiously called out, my eyes wide as I looked back and forth.

Silence met my ears.

I took a few more steps forward before raising my voice a bit. "Hello?"

This time my voice echoed. Shaking my head, I huffed and started marching into the cave.

"Donald? Goofy? You guys still in here?"

"Sora!" I heard Goofy's voice cry from the back of the cave.

I immediately burst into a run, a fire spell already on my mind.

Forget that. Fire? Against a dragon? Way to go, Sora. D'oh. Maybe thunder instead. Yeah. Thunder spell on the mind! Much better.

As I rounded the final corner I knew lay between me and the gummi, I stared.

The dragon was actually visible!

He stood nearly ten feet tall, I swear! Bright green in color with almost ridiculously small purple bat-like wings, pinkish hair and pink spots, he loomed near our ship, staring at it with wide and curious eyes. His heavy frame bumbled almost clumsily around it.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" I shouted.

It instantly turned, panting happily, pink tongue flopping out of its mouth.

I blinked, quite confused. Wasn't this the time for the thing to burst into action and attack me?

Goofy waved from his seat atop the gummi, his white-gloved hand clearly visible in the faintly fire-lit cave's gloom. "Well, hiya! We were wonderin' where you were! How was Passamashloppy?"

"Quoddy!" came Donald's irritated shout from the gummi's cockpit.

Relaxing, I looked curiously between Goofy and the dragon. "Passamaquoddy's really peaceful, actually. Just some problems with the local fish supply. No sign of what we're looking for. I don't know…. What the heck's going on here?"

"Oh, this? This guy just came up to say 'hi'! At first we were thinkin' it might be a problem, but he's just curious is all!" Goofy happily said, reaching out to lightly ruffle the dragon's hair.

"So I see," I said, my concern fading and my trademark goofy grin plastering itself across my lips.

"What're you doin' runnin' around with Spellbinder, Sora?"

"Oh!" Looking down at my hand, I blinked. I'd almost forgotten that I still had the keyblade in my hand. "Nothing. Just… flipping through keychains. Heh heh." My grin turned sheepish as I sent the blade away once more. Dusting my hands off, I walked towards the gummi and its curious visitor.

Turning my gaze to the dragon as I came to stand by his side, I smiled brightly. "So, you're Elliott?"

He made a surprised sound, blinking his enormous eyes before lowering his face. Sticking his nose near my chest, he took a deep breath.

I couldn't help but laugh. "Thought so. I met Pete in town today. He told me all about you."

At the mention of the boy's name, the dragon's tongue lolled out of its mouth and it happily panted again, clicking a few times to show his recognition. Obviously, there was nothing to fear from this creature so long as you didn't intend to harm his ward.

"Sora!" Donald's voice burst from the cockpit.

"Yeah?" I replied, patting the dragon's nose even as I leaned to my side, looking curiously towards the gummi.

"You should take a look at this! We've got Heartless – and it looks like they're in town!"

"What?" I burst, springing from my stance to run to the ship. Heaving myself into the hatch, I dashed into the small cockpit and flopped into a seat beside Donald. "I was just there! It's as peaceful as can be!"

"Not quite so peaceful," the duck's gravelly voice growled as he jabbed a finger towards the monitor. "Just take a look!"

I blinked, watching with shock as a few stray yellow dots sparkled on the readout, meshing with the larger blue blocks I knew to be buildings and the moving indigo spots that were the representations of people. Fortunately it didn't appear that the yellow indications were overriding the indigo ones – yet. The Heartless were staying low.

Maybe that's why I hadn't seen them?

Maybe they really were responsible for the fishermen's woes in Passamaquoddy!

"Gawrsh! That sure was sudden!" Goofy's voice came from behind us as he stuck his head down in the hatch, his hat curiously sticking to his upside-down head. "We hadn't seen nothin' all day, 'till Elliott here showed up!"

The dragon's large shout appeared in front of the gummi's forward window as he babbled his jibberish, his voice concerned. I thought I could hear him blurt out something that sounded like 'Heartless.'

"Elliott? Who the heck is Elliott?" Donald bit.

"The dragon," I quickly answered, pointing to the forward window. "But never mind that right now! This is near the docks, right?"

"Yeah," Donald confirmed, looking at me with large and concerned eyes. "I think so."

"Doesn't look like there's too many. I'll go check it out."

"You want us to back you up?" Goofy asked, blinking owlishly.

"Nah. There're only a couple from what I see on the monitor. I should be able to handle it." Flashing a cheeky grin, I made my way towards the hatch.

Goofy frowned as he sat upright, lifting his head out of the hatch so I could shimmy back out of the gummi again. Rubbing the back of his head with one large hand, he looked at me down the length of his nervously quivering nose. "You sure you're gonna be okay, Sora?"

I smiled brightly. "Oh come on! I am the Keyblade Master, after all!"

"There he goes again," Donald groaned from inside the ship.

"I can handle a couple Heartless on my own. I got Darkside on my own, right?"

"And almost got your butt kicked, too. You were in pretty rotten shape when you cane into the room I was in during the fight with Ansem! Or did you forget how many Curagas I had to burn through in that battle?" Donald retorted.

"Hey," I growled.

Elliott jabbered worriedly, clicking his tongue as he gestured with his massive head towards the mouth of the cave.

"Ya know, I think that Elliott here's tryin' to tell you that the Heartless're more important than arguin' with each other," Goofy interjected.

Donald and I just huffed.

"Alright. Goofy, Donald, you guys keep your eyes peeled for anything else unusual that pops up. I'm going to go check out the docks again."

"Er, what'd'ya think we should do 'bout him?" Goofy asked, gesturing with a thumb towards Elliott.

"Eh, he's a dragon. Let him do what he wants," I suggested with a helpless shrug.

Elliott panted and clicked again before tromping towards me.

I blinked, staring at him. "Actually, I think it's best if I did this alone."

He moaned, dropping his snout and looking at me with sorrowful eyes.

"Well, if you really want to help out," I stared, lightly stroking the dragon's nose, "I suppose… hey! I know!"

The dragon's eyes opened wide at my outburst, my excitement bleeding over.

"The town! The fish supplies have dried up. I'm sure Pete's going to suggest this soon, but can you see what you can do to get the grounds to shift back? With the Heartless now by the docks, I'm certain that they're responsible for driving them away. And a dragon like you should be able to do something about the Heartless, right?"

The beast growled low in his throat, his eyes narrowing, little tufts of smoke billowing from his nostrils. He jerked his head towards the ceiling and snarled, his teeth bared, flame flickering between his fangs as he gnashed and bit, his jabbering surprisingly fierce.

I grinned. "I'll take that to mean yes?"

Looking at me, he plastered a big grin on his dragon face and nodded, the smoke dissipating.

"Alright! Then I'm off to the docks. Guys, I'll be back tonight. See you then!"

Turning, I ran from the cave. I heard the massive beast tromping at my heels.

I wasn't surprised when I glanced back and saw nothing there.

It was dusk when I finally reached the docks, my run slowing to an easy jog. Making my way through the evening crowds and looking about, I sighed quietly even as I came to a stop.

It was still peaceful in Passamaquoddy's center.

"But I know what I saw on the monitor," I mumbled to myself, walking slowly to the piers. "They should be around here somewhere."

I stared into the shadows intently, willing golden eyes to appear.

Nothing did.

I huffed in disappointment. My first lead to the Heartless had turned up a bit empty.

Walking out onto the longest of the wooden piers that erupted form the boardwalk, passing the small rowboats that were docked there with their empty fishing nets still lumped in their bottoms and their vacant lobster traps seated upon their gnarled benches, I watched as the sun slowly sank into the ocean. Taking a seat at the edge of the pier, letting my feet dangle over the rippling water, I sighed. My feet kicked idly back and forth as I stared at the plethora of colors that emerged from the ocean, skittering across its waves and flooding the sky.

Oranges, pinks, reds, purples, soft blues and dark indigo all intermeshed into a beautiful display. I sighed in quiet appreciation.

Letting my mind wander, I smiled faintly as I recalled the last time Riku and I had sat side by side, watching a similar sunset.

It was a bare week before Destiny Islands had been consumed, the pinnacle of summer vacation. We'd decided to finally build our raft. That day Riku and I had slaved away with our plans, deciding how big it would have to be, how large the sail would be, and so on and so forth. Then I pondered how much bigger it would have to be for our stores and for Kairi.

I vaguely recalled the rather disappointed look on his face as I mentioned her. I've never been able to figure that out.

He'd shaken off that look so quickly that I'd doubted I'd seen it in the first place, replacing it with a smug smile and telling me how much of a moron I was. Of course he'd already been planning to include Kairi. After all, we three were inseparable, right? So he gestured at the raft plans, showing how it was more than big enough for the three of us and had adequate room for stores for our adventure.

I was a little hurt by his statement. I'd always thought it would just be the two of us, off on a grand adventure like we always talked about when we were kids. I'd brought up Kairi to test him, to see whether or not my suspicions that he'd had a change of heart in how our adventure would be played out were true. But then again, we couldn't just leave Kairi behind.

We were her best friends. We were the ones who'd found her on the beach when she first washed up after the meteor storm. We were the ones who would protect her, always. So we couldn't leave her behind.

Besides, I had a bit of a crush on her… I suppose… eh heh.

She's pretty! And kind. And sweet. And she likes the same things I do – coconuts on a hot day, lounging in the sand without a care in the world, water fights, ghost stories, marshmallows roasted over an open fire.

Riku… we used to connect completely, but we'd been drifting apart ever since Kairi arrived. Like he'd suddenly grown up and left me to be kids with her. Like he was our adult supervision there to goad me into being 'more of a man,' and to flirt outrageously with her at every opportunity instead of play like we used to.

His devotion to her was so aggravating at times. Her acknowledgement of it was almost worse.

I… suppose I was jealous. Why, I don't know. But….

I was always so terrified of being left behind.

I didn't want to be alone.

Watching as the dusk's colors faded into the soft midnight blue of night, the stars faintly poking their heads out of their dark curtain, I looked at the water that sloshed against the pier's supports under my feet.

I wonder how Riku was able to deal with being alone…?

Right now, he had King Mickey at his side. But before that… is that why he did what he did? Because he was lonely? Because he was desperate to get us back? Because….

Unlike me, who found new friends, he was always so alone…?

I groaned as I pressed my hands to my face.

I wasn't getting anything done.

Shaking my head, growling at myself, I rose to my feet. "Sheesh, Sora. You're here to find Heartless, not ponder over the ways of Riku and the past with Kairi. Grow up and do your job," I lambasted myself. Turning sharply on my heel, I made to make my way to the boardwalk again.

I stopped the moment I turned, though.

There was something new in town that I hadn't noticed on my walk to the pier.

I probably just pushed my way right past it when I was barreling through the crowd to reach the site where the monitor in the gummi had displayed the Heartless' signature blips.

An odd little wagon, complete with roll-out stage, was set upon the now vacant edge of the town's desolate center. Gaudily colored fabric draped over it. Light poured from its interior.

I craned my neck, listening carefully. There seemed to be chatter coming from the inside.

"This could be quite a profitable business!"

I blinked. Businessmen? In a wagon dressed up like something to display side-show freaks on? Lifting my gaze, I read the sign above the state. 'Doctor Terminus' Remedies.'

Interesting. A traveling doctor?

The voice continued, delighted and deep, from the warm innards of the wagon's cloth folds. "There's so many cures from bits of dragon!"

I blinked. Bits of dragon?

My stomach turned cold.

Approaching the wagon, I slid beneath it, carefully listening to the man plotting inside.

"Dragon whiskers, dragon toes, a dragon tooth and a dragon nose! Every little piece… every little piece! We could make a million by slicing him, dicing him-"

I nearly lost my lunch even as I hurriedly scurried out from under the wagon and stared at it with wide eyes. The distance between myself and the little traveling stand inhibited me from hearing anything more, but in my opinion I'd heard enough.

Slicing and dicing a dragon?

They were talking about Elliott!

The dragon who's sole purpose was to defend that boy, Pete!

Grimacing, I shook my head. Now I knew why the Heartless were in Passamaquoddy. Apparently there was a heart black enough to attract their power to this peaceful world.

I glared as a man in a long gray cape and a man in a brown suit verily danced down the boardwalk towards the bars, singing merrily about 'money, money, money by the pound.'

Not if I could help it.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Suggestions? Complaints? Come unto the Ansem! (cradles her plushie that a buddy of hers was nice enough to draw for her) Submit! 


	9. Angel

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 9  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Angel

I plunged into the dark recesses of the pits below.

I felt the darkness that coursed through my body, drawn by my desire to find the one who instilled the hateful black aura within me that robbed me of my light, boil in my blood as I tightened my grip on the base sword of First Tsurugi. I was plummeting into an unknown situation, one that was undoubtedly dangerous; Leon doesn't use that gunblade of his for no reason, and had only fired it twice in my recent recollections, both of those being during the Hades Cup tournaments. My cape rustled noisily, shoved violently to the side as the product of that darkness – the singular leathery wing that graces the left side of my back, granted to me through my contract with the Lord of the Underworld – burst into being, flapping once to hasten my decent.

My heart danced nervously in my ribcage while my breath rattled in short bursts in my lungs. I didn't know what to expect – the explosive shot of the gunblade was the last sound I'd expected to hear. Was Leon in trouble? Was whatever it was he'd used that weapon against eradicated, or did it manage to survive the attack? Would he be in need of my help? And what was it that he could possibly be facing that would require the firing of his gunblade, that couldn't be defeated simply with the blade's edge or the fire magic he shows such proficiency with?

I was, to mince words, a bit scared. I would never confess that to anyone, nor would I let it show, but….

If Leon was resorting to his gunblade's full power, he might actually need help. And the thought of something truly being beyond him, given what I'd seen in the tournaments, was frightening.

Forcing my eyes to stay open at least a sliver, watching the clouds and billowing mists race towards my face, I glowered at the few protrusions that erupted from the sides of the massive fortification we called home that stood in my way. My wing spread instinctively at my side then flapped once, sending me spinning slightly to my right. The gesture was repeated at a slightly different angle, shifting my body to the left once past the first obstacle to avoid the second series that blocked my path.

That sound came from directly below where I had been seated. It was near the elevator stop. I could tell that by the lack of reverberation and distortion in the sound – it had come from straight below, not echoing through the winding passages that puncture the rock formations upon which Hollow Bastion sits.

The thick mists parted before me, swirling violently around my plummeting form. I could feel my hair whip violently against my skull, the chilly wind blasting over my cold-flushed cheeks. My cape flapped against my back and my wing, my pants fluttered madly around my legs. It took nearly all of my strength to hold First Tsurugi's base sword straight, using its split tip to puncture the atmosphere before me as I fell. My eyes were watering badly with the force of the cold air pressing against them. Finally the heavy clouds began to clear, the white masses I was plunging through thinning to a haze gray and finally vanishing altogether. I could see the ground clearly.

Flapping twice, righting myself instantaneously, I landed on a slight outcrop of rock that jutted from the rough cliff's side. Perching lightly on that rock, my cape finally fluttering down to lay calmly on my back, my wing barely spread to maintain my balance, I wavered on my toes and laid the fingers of my left hand along the edge of that ledge I'd landed on while keeping my grip on First Tsurugi's base sword with my right, leaning over to stare at the sight below.

My gaze refused to remain crisply in focus. My eyes burned, a sharp stinging sensation throbbing from the back of my sockets and racing along the base of my Mako orbs. My left hand curled slightly, scraping the metal claws of my glove against the rock. My throat clenched, the wretched taste of sickness on the back of my tongue.

Blood was everywhere.

And the source of that red pool that stained the ground….

The one I'd been looking for.

I started as the black-winged angel spread his singular feathered limb, the fading yellow light of some mystic column he'd been encased in and the flickering blue glow of some spell dancing over his long silver locks. He slowly straightened his stance, his black trench coat falling easily around his slender body, the guards on his shoulders catching the light and shining, the metal belts that circled his waist clinking softly, their music barely audible to my sharp ears as it echoed up the wall I was on. Blood dripped from that single wing. Feathers slowly fell, some severed, some falling from the limb without provocation.

He turned slightly, facing a person I'd never seen before his attention fell across that being. I focused. I didn't recognize that person. I didn't recognize the robes.

The weapon my winged adversary held, its horrible length glistening merrily, pierced cleanly through the chest of its victim, its point buried in the ground beneath that body. The body itself was at a slight angle, telling of how the strike occurred – the person speared had stared at the heavens, leaning back slightly to focus and perhaps counter any blow that was to come. Masamune had thrust forward, impaling that victim and burying a good segment of its length into stone.

Blood was still dribbling down the sword's length, now dripping from the edge of the stone upon which the opponents stood and adding its red coloration to the stagnant waters. It audibly plopped.

As my eyes set their gaze on the victim of tat beast's terrible sword, I nearly lost the contents of my stomach again. I felt my body shake violently.

I'd just noticed the gunblade glinting in the fading light at that body's feet.

My hand tightened its grip on my base sword. My teeth clenched tightly, gritting together. I felt my wing twitch, my legs tense, my shoulders bunch, my cheeks become wet with uncontrolled tears. My left hand left the rock it gripped to instead pull the hollow-core impact sword free of my scabbard.

I couldn't contain the animalistic roar that burst from my lips, more akin to an antagonized scream than anything else.

"Sephiroth!" I cried as I leapt from my perch, my eyes narrowed as my swords lead me to him.

He turned towards me. His Mako eyes glistened smugly even as his lips spread to form a thin, mocking smile. With a quick twist of his wrist and a jerk of his arm, he pulled Masamune from the ground and tore it free of his victim's body, bringing it before himself even as he gestured to me with his left hand, beckoning for me to come to him.

He sprang from the ground, his wing flapping mightily as he took to the air to confront me, blood flying from it with its initial burst of motion.

Our swords clanged loudly before Sephiroth's victim hit the ground. I shuddered as the warm, wet blood from the dark angel's sword flew free of its length, splattering over my clothing and upon my cheeks. His smile widened, his pearly teeth glistening viciously in the faint light cast upon us by the set sun's horizon-escaping rays and the newly risen moon. "Cloud," his deep voice recognized, his stare unnervingly confident and calm.

I snarled as I shoved against him as hard as I could with my base sword. He slipped easily to my right, avoiding my following slash with my hollow-core blade, pushing away with his sword and using my inertia against me.

We separated quickly, him coming to an easy and graceful landing atop a spire of rock that floated in the stagnant, solid water. I landed beside the gunbalde that rested alongside its crumpled wielder. Turning sharply on my heel, refusing to let my gaze linger on what I knew was at my feet, I instead snarled at the creature that had stricken him.

"Come. Taste redemption for your treachery," he mockingly challenged, his thick words assaulting my ears.

Overcome by rage, I leapt at him once more. Snapping the hollow-core blade into place along the base sword in my right hand to increase the weight and power behind my swing and to improve the slicing edge of the weapon, I yanked one of the serrated twin blades that made up the completed assembly's back free of my scabbard and twirled it on my way to meet him.

He sprang easily towards my left, vaulting off the rock he'd perched on. I felt my foot contact with his previous post and pushed away from it, following him.

He hit the wall long before I caught up with him, turning slightly. His hair flew in a graceful halo about his head, swirling with his sudden movement as his coat billowed about his body. Reaching forward with his left hand, his legs bunched underneath him.

My eyes sprang wide open as he flew from his vertical brace, coming straight at me. I crossed my blades in preparation to block the assault.

His hand met my wing. His fingers dug into its thin leather.

Even as I quickly parted the serrated blade in my left hand from its cross with the combination sword in my right to leave only the base/hollow-core to hold Masamune at bay in a vain attempt to knock his hand away, he twirled in midair and smiled calmly in my face even as I stared at him. Then he flung me with all of his Jenova-granted might.

My direction suddenly altered, I careened off the side of one of the rocky spires that sprang from the waters below, bouncing roughly from the solid obstacle then splashing onto the concrete-hard water. Somewhere along my tremulous path my scabbard snapped open, scattering both switchblade swords and my other serrated blade from its confines to rest throughout the cavern. My left hand lost its grip on my final serrated blade, leaving only the base sword with its attached hollow-core impact blade in my possession.

I heard his boots tap lightly on the ground above me – he'd landed atop the spire he'd thrown me alongside of. I slowly tightened my grip on my remaining sword, twisting it slightly to release the lock the base weapon had on its companion to grant me usage of duel weapons again.

"Cloud!" I heard a voice shriek loudly before the clang of metal striking metal met my ears.

"Yuffie?" I gasped, lifting my face from the wet landing spot I'd found myself in, pushing my sore body upright.

She flipped gracefully before landing beside me, a scowl marking her petite lips before she glanced down at me to ensure I was unhurt.

We heard a faint whistling in the air. Instinctively we both jumped, my feet barely regaining purchase to shove me from my landing spot the moment she sprang away.

Yuffie's Conformer sliced into the water where we were standing, having been neatly repelled by my adversary's sword. A single breath passed from our lungs before I was faced once again with his pale visage, his glowing blue eyes, his arrogant smile. His hair slowly brushed along my cheek, our proximity was so extremely close. I reached as quickly as I could for the handle of my hollow-core impact sword, intent on ripping it from the lead edge of my base weapon.

I cried out, shoved away, as his fist connected solidly with my body.

Coming quickly to my senses, I was able to plant my feet solidly on the stone wall I'd been hurled towards. Lifting my gaze, my hair filling my sight, I glared and sprang towards him once more. I finally managed to wrap my fingers about my secondary sword's hilt and tore it free of the base sword, snapping the base weapon into its split configuration while I was at it. Leading with First Tsurugi's base and trailing the hollow-core weapon I snarled.

He lifted his sword quickly to deflect my blow, the ring of our weapons colliding barreling through the tight cavern we were in. More blood was shaken free of his sword.

I lifted my left hand and the sword it held, bringing it town again in a harsh slash as I occupied Masamune with my base weapon. He tilted the weapon, parrying my slash with the long sword's leather-wrapped hilt. I scraped the base sword along his weapon's length, this time trying to slide the tip underneath its protective span and jab for his stomach. He shifted once more and blocked.

Slice after slice, jab after jab, we parried and delivered our blows. He brought Masamune screaming towards my neck – I ducked, lashing forward with my impact blade. He blocked it with a hasty twirl of his overly long weapon, metal grinding painfully against metal.

I was suddenly blasted away by a horribly cold spray of ice. We parted, his eyes turned to glare with the slightest hint of annoyance at the interruption, my eyes focused on where the spell had originated.

The man with the black robes, his brown hair cascading on either side of his face, was preparing another spell.

Fortunately Yuffie interrupted him, a high-pitched war cry on her lips as she charged and threw a volley of shuriken.

I hit the ground again. My hollow-core impact blade flew from my left hand.

Damn it all… you'd think by now I'd learn to pay attention!

Gripping my side, I grimaced sharply as pain flew along my nerves. My hand was sopping wet. Whimpering, I rolled even as I sensed him coming for me, barely dodging Masamune as it plunged into the hard water I'd been pummeled against.

I staggered without grace to my feet, biting my lip as I lifted my hand to stare at the heavy blood that stained it. Shaking it a few times, I slid my left hand to join my right on the hilt of First Tsurugi's base sword – it was the last weapon I had left, the other five weapons that combine with it to constitute its final form scattered everywhere in the area I was battling in, and I was determined to put every last ounce of strength I had behind every swing I'd make with it. Sephiroth smirked at me, drawing himself to his full height, folding that black wing of his along his back. He yanked his sword free from its capturing water, flinging it gracefully to his side and spraying water from its sharp edge in sparkling droplets. He took one step towards me.

I grimaced, trying to take a step forward, my side screaming veritable obscenities in the form of pain at my brain. I felt myself waver.

Suddenly my vision was clouded by green light. I heard the chiming of bells above my head. Blinking in surprise, I turned my head slightly, glancing to my left where I saw a flicker of movement.

Aerith smiled and waved at me.

A smirk hit my lips. I had a healer – I could face him!

Lunging towards him, feeling the air around me pick up and whirl about my frame to defend me, I lead with my sword's split tip and aimed for his head. Sephiroth's eyes widened slightly even as he brought his sword to bear, blocking my attack, then twisted the blade and slashed to drive me away.

The tip of his blade bounced ineffectively against the hastily cast Aeroga spell that protected me.

Staggering as I came to a stop, his change of my vector catching me by surprise, I leapt again, aiming to take this battle once more to the air. To my pleasure, I heard his feathery wing spread and flap.

A roar barreled towards us from above.

Glancing up, I flapped my own leathery wing once, twisting out of the way of the plunging mass that fell my way. Cutting the timing so close that we nearly collided, I felt the edge of my cape get caught momentarily on that object, nearly pulling me from the sky with it.

As I'd blocked his view, my adversary was not so quick to dodge.

Cid slammed into him full force, Venus Gospel narrowly missing the beast's heart and instead piercing his left breast. They crashed as one into the ground.

Setting foot on the edge of the spire I'd been aiming for, I reversed the direction of my flight and pushed towards the ground to lend my aid.

I wasn't quick enough. Sephiroth brought his dreadful sword around, using its flat to push the burly warrior off his body then twisting it mid-slash to bury its sharp edge into Cid's body. The old man cried out in pain as he was thrown forcibly from his target.

I landed beside the one-winged angel just a moment later, snarling in frustration as he leapt from his crash site to the air once more. I felt my muscles strain as I burst into flight to chase him.

He flew straight past the tall spire I had been aiming for. I attempted to follow.

Seconds later, he turned and smiled.

"Thundaga."

Crap!

I shuddered as the electrical spell roared through my frame, losing my lift and crashing onto the top of the spire. A moment later my breath burst from my lungs and my eyes flooded with water.

I would have struggled, but I couldn't.

He'd thrust his sword straight through my stomach, pinning me to the hard rock.

I blinked, watching my vision sparkle before my eyes. I tried to reach for that sword, to pull it from my body, only to be rewarded with his foot being planted onto my wrist. I grimaced, crying out weakly as I felt my bones grind together and threaten to break.

Yuffie and Cid's concerned cries met my ears. Aerith's voice reverberated up the wall, the first syllable of Aeroga slipping from her lips before she screeched.

The shattering of ice took the place of her voice. Apparently the man who'd added his magic to the battle hadn't fallen under Yuffie's attack.

Yuffie howled in rage, then the sound of metal striking metal rang. Cid's distinctive cursing was added to the fray, along with Aerith's calls to the heavens to bring healing to her friends. They were locked once more into vicious battle, leaving me to face the one-winged angel that hovered over me alone. I blinked a few more times, trying to clear my vision, trying vainly to see something other than what was directly before me.

Sephiroth just smiled at me, his deep voice quietly chuckling at my dilemma. Leaning towards me, his tone quiet, he muttered, "So now you pay for your treachery against Mother. You, who are of me, who are of Hojo's design, who brought Mother such despair. Your blood will be a great testimonial to color the path to Reunion."

I grimaced at him, my fingers trying to tighten their grip on First Tsurugi's base sword, my arm shakily trying to work free from under his boot.

He smirked as he twisted the sword that so cleanly punctured me. I screamed, my voice sharp with pain.

"Cloud!" Yuffie's voice cried out again. It was much closer this time.

Sephiroth turned towards his right, his smile still present as he lifted his hand. Power gathered in his fingers.

Another thunder spell?

"Thundaga."

Yes. Another thunder spell. I remember him having such a preference for those.

Yuffie squealed, falling clumsily away as my adversary darkly laughed.

I blinked again – my vision was fading away. As my world slowly dropped into darkness, I barely heard his voice taunting my companions. Then his statements were directed towards me once again.

"Farewell, Cloud," he softly bade, his tone merciful even as he put his weight on that weapon of his to drive it deeper into me.

Sephiroth suddenly gasped.

I forced my eyes open, blinking rapidly to clear what little vision I had left.

Something silver was jutting from his chest, hurled with deadly accuracy into that region where his heart beat. Something that didn't look at all like a shuriken.

I was staring at Leon's gunblade.

His hand loosened from his sword, Sephiroth staggered back a single step, staring at his chest with complete disbelief in his wide Mako eyes. A faint grin passed his lips as his form began to dissolve.

I watched with huge eyes as he slowly faded, his black feathers dropping from his wing and swirling around, his body becoming naught but a swirl of the colors that composed him even as he became more and more translucent.

The gunblade dropped uselessly to the ground even as the blood that was along its edge vanished while Sephiroth faded completely from view, that sword which was holding me prisoner disappearing with him.

Cid grunted as he finally completed his previously unnoticed climb, hefting himself onto the top of the spire alongside of me. He huffed and puffed tiredly before turning and offering a hand to whoever was following me.

I groaned quietly, laying my injured hand on my stomach to cover my wound even as my eyes beheld what had to be Heaven's most pure angel come to hover over me.

A small smile pressed upon her pink lips, her soft brown bangs draping down either side of her calm face and her long twist of hair falling over her shoulder to cover her pink dress' top, Aerith laid her hands lightly upon my crushed appendage. "Curaga," she breathed, her cheeks pale from the expenditure of the last of her magical energy.

I winced as the magic poured through my body, reconstructing damaged tissue and forcing my veins to once more be whole. As the green glow of the spell faded from sight, I sighed and slowly sat up. "Thank you," I muttered.

She nodded slowly. "That was the last thing I expected to see," she confessed, shaking her head. "His companion was no small threat either. Most of my energy went towards driving him away."

"The one in robes wasn't defeated?" I tiredly asked.

"No," Aerith quietly confessed. "Yuffie, Cid and I used every spell we had, but he still escaped. I only saved enough to heal you, having seen the straits you were in."

"Mother fucking hell," Cid breathed, leaning back to relax his worn frame. "You believe that shit? That bastard was a damned summon! A fucking summon, some damned clone made up of darkness! Who in their right mind calls that batch of bad news?"

"Don't know," I grumbled, rubbing my head. My eyes settled on the gunblade once more. Suddenly the memories of what I'd seen when I first plunged into the cavern struck my brain. "Leon…. Is he alright?"

"Leon…?" Aerith whispered, her eyes springing wide. She followed my line of sight, gasping as she spotted the gunblade herself. Jumping to her feet she quickly traced the line of trajectory it had to have followed and covered her mouth with her hands.

I slowly rolled over to see what she'd seen. Cid must have looked too – he fell silent, his lamentations about the sudden and unexpected appearance of a summon of Sephiroth coming to an awkward halt. "Oh shit," I heard him mutter.

I pushed myself to my knees and sprang immediately from the spire we were atop. Spreading my wing, I glided as quickly as I could to the small segment of land I'd initially landed on, that area where the crystal for ordering the elevator to come was stationed.

I landed clumsily near to Yuffie, staggering gracelessly to her side.

"Please, please tell me you have some magic," she whispered, her soft eyes sparling with tears and her cheeks marred with wet trails.

"No," I mournfully admitted. I hadn't bothered even thinking about materia as I'd sprang from my evening resting place, and I'd never focused on learning the alternate methods of drawing the effects of magic to reality by using mystic strength and utterances of the correct phrases.

Kneeling at her side, I gently pulled Leon's body into my arms, my voice failing me as I felt his cold frame slowly leak the last of its chilled blood onto my clothing. Crying in anguish, I buried my nose in his brunet hair, holding him as tightly as I could, willing him to open his eyes, to move, to give me any sign that he was alive.

He never did.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: For everyone who's gonna whine about Cloud's ineptitude during this battle – yes, I know he normally doesn't suck. But you know what? Deal. He was run through by Sephy in FF7, he can be run through here too. Heh. And who's to say he'd be fighting his best, considering what he'd laid eyes on when he reached the cavern to do battle? His focus can be (and in my story, especially this chapter, is) completely off. Ha ha. Author's right. As stated, I like picking on the blonde unicorn. He's a great target.

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Suggestions? Complaints? Come unto the Ansem! He wants you to Submit! 


	10. Memories

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :)

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 10  
The SeeD Commander – Memories

It was luminous and warm.

I sighed quietly, my approach to the huge building that rose strikingly from the ground unhurried. My boots roughly scraped over the gravel path I was following as I emerged from the heavy foliage that littered the landscape outside of Balamb Garden. The sun was gleaming brightly in the heavens, its rays dancing from the Garden's terrifically white walls. Lifting a slim hand, I shielded my eyes.

I couldn't help but allow a small smile to touch my lips , as unnatural as it seemed. I knew within the depths of my heart that this was nothing but a dream. After all, this place didn't look at all as it did at the moment when it last stood – it was a floating island long before it had been demolished.

I remember that day so clearly….

I'd seen my home swallowed by shadow. I'd watched everyone I loved being destroyed by darkness. I'd run through the halls of the rising building before me, my boots splashing in spilt blood and inky remains of Heartless, my stomach barely retaining its contents as I passed by the dismembered bodies of my fellow SeeDs.

I'd beaten my fists to a bloody pump against those doors that stood between me and my dearest friends, my closest companions and confidants. I'd listened to their screams of terror, their cries of pain, their wails as they were consumed. By the time the obstacle gave way before me, by the time I was able to penetrate the barrier that had held me at bay, it was so very late. I'd stood in the center of the hall I'd first celebrated my ascension from cadet to SeeD in, the hall I'd first met her in, the place where we'd first danced. I'd bowed my head, letting my tears trail from my eyes while their heartless bodies surrounded me. I'd knelt beside her, gathering her still frame into my arms, buried my nose in her soft dark hair and whimpered my apologies to her.

When the Heartless came for me, sweeping through Balamb Garden's magnificent frame a second time to capture those whose hearts weren't decimated in their first series of strikes, I waited patiently.

Part of me wished to surrender to their will, to sacrifice myself to their claws. I wouldn't be alone – I would join my friends in death. We would be together again in whatever awaited us in the realm the Heartless' victims flew to.

The other part of me, however, refused to let me give in to that longing. That part of me snarled that Rinoa wouldn't forgive me for such a selfish sacrifice and instead would wish for me to attempt to live, to fulfill whatever destiny was to be mine, to try my damnedest to find happiness once more.

As they'd burst into the room, I fought them. My gunblade sang that dark night, dripping black vitae as it swept through the masses that sought to bury me.

I'd been forced to retreat from that hall, forced to run for all I was worth.

I was forced to leave behind those who truly mattered to me. I was forced to leave behind the Garden we'd known as 'home' since coming from the orphanage. I was forced to watch my home, that which contained all I held dear, vanish into blackness.

I had barely noted the strangely colored ship that descended or the rough, gruff individual that shouted at me to get in. I didn't register what was occurring when he jumped free of his vessel, forcibly grabbing my arm and hauling me into that vehicle.

Upon the edge of my hearing I'd caught Selphie's voice shouting at me from the lands outside of the ship I was pulled inside of. She was waving from a lone untouched spot of grass-covered land, her hands bereft of weapons and her dress stained with her own blood. "Squall! Go! Stay alive for us, will you?" she'd shouted.

I'd numbly nodded in her direction even as a column of darkness burst around her and enveloped her.

I had attempted to bolt to her aid, her name rolling from my tongue, my voice harsh and panicked. The old man who'd dragged me into his ship managed by some miracle to hold me at bay, wrestling me firmly into the belly of the strange beast he flew and slamming his thick fist onto a button that urged the door to whoosh shut.

Glaring incredulously at the door took every ounce of fight I had left in my body. As my strength leaked away, I was encouraged to simply fall into a nearby seat and bury my face in my left hand, my right still loosely holding my stained gunblade.

"Hey, kid," the old man's raucous voice quietly said, sympathy oozing over his tone. "You're gonna be alright."

I'd closed my eyes. I'd known at that time that I should have had a million questions roaring through my mind and bursting from my mouth. For example, where were we going? What were we doing? Why did he rescue me and leave anyone else who might have survived to die? Why did he prevent me from running to Selphie? Why did he steal my only chance to redeem my earlier sins in the battle that had befallen our home? But nothing would make its way past my still lips.

"Name's Cid," he amiably began, roughly clapping my shoulder. "Cid Highwind. You?"

I paused for a moment, considering his question. A flash, a moment of inspiration, struck my brain so suddenly I was verily seeing stars.

"Leon," I had brought myself to softly reply.

"But that girlie called you Squall."

I'd huffed, hanging my head as my left hand dropped to rest upon the armrest of the chair I'd occupied. "Squall Leonhart is dead. That man failed his friends. That man failed his home. He fell to the Heartless. There's no way that man could find happiness. Rinoa… she'd want me to be happy."

"And you can't be happy as him, eh? I guess I can understand that." Cid had sighed and given my shoulder a comforting squeeze even as another voice, young and childish, squealed from the back of the cabin that 'Squall sounds so much cooler!'

The memories were so clear that the incident that fell upon my shoulders so long ago might as well have been yesterday. Shaking my head, I stopped before the gates of Balamb Garden and stared at the looming obstacles that blocked my progression.

Pressing my hand to the gates, I gave them an easy push and was hardly surprised when they opened silently to my touch.

After all, this was all a dream. A falsehood created by my pained heart to bring some form of comfort, though waking would do nothing but repeat the cycle I lived every day – happiness in sleep, painful realization that the day is true reality and that my friends and my home are still victims of darkness, miserable sulking amongst the gathering of people who'd called Hollow Bastion their childhood home before being shuttled down to a place they simply called the Planet, silent solitude spent in the company of a good book and quiet recollections of why it was that I continued to strive to live day after day, and finally falling into slumber to relive my past nightmares and my hopelessly cheerful dreams.

Nothing more, nothing less. I wasn't surprised at all when I saw her standing before me, her smile bright and inviting as she clasped her hands behind her back. A crystalline breeze brushed past her, stirring her blue blouse about her body, rustling her dark hair around her round face and her sparkling eyes.

Walking to her, I took her into my arms and pressed my nose into her hair. "Rinoa," I quietly greeted, holding her tightly.

"Squall," she returned, her voice reflecting the impossibly bright smile I instinctively knew was on her lips. "What did you do this time?"

"What do you mean?" I pondered, pulling back just a hint so I could lay my lips upon her forehead with a chaste kiss.

"This is no simple dream," she said, looking at me with her penetrating eyes, her full pink lips turning with a frown. "You're…."

I blinked.

"I… was struck down, wasn't I?"

She slowly nodded, her look surprisingly saddened. I had thought she would be happy that I had come to her at last… that I had made as decent of an attempt as I could to attain joy in my so-called life, and that my journey through existence was completed?

"Squall," she softly whispered, bowing her head and hiding her gaze behind her long black hair, "it's not too late to go back, you know. Can't you feel it? The tug of life's light trying to pull you back?"

I frowned even as I laid a hand upon her waist, taking a step towards the deeper interior of the massive structure that composed Balamb Garden. Reflecting on her words as I lead her towards a particularly lush area of the Garden's lands that I knew and loved for its beauty and isolation, I let my shoulders shrug slowly. "Yes. But the stain of darkness on that light makes it less welcoming than this place."

"Weren't you happy?"

I blinked, focusing my gaze on her even as I pushed low-hanging branches out of our way. "Happy…?" My lips turned with a slight frown even as I lead her into the clearing that was once my secretive hiding place from the rest of the world – a simple swatch of grass surrounded by thick trees and heavy bushes that blocked out most of the sky, allowing only a few slight glimpses of blue to meet inquisitive eyes that stared through the leafy roof.

Separating from me, she cast me a hollow smile. "Yes, Squall. Weren't you?"

As she flopped down onto the grassy ground, her arms splayed to her sides and her legs relaxed and slightly spread, I laid by her on my side. I first reached to her forehead, brushing some of the wild strands of hair that clung to her skin to meet the rest of the dark halo that sprawled through the emerald grass and framed her features. A few long moments passed as I let my gray eyes rove over her, taking in the beautiful sight of the woman at my side before I laid my hand lightly upon her hip, haphazardly holding her as I relaxed and braced my head upright with my other arm. Ducking my gaze as her eyes bore into mine, I sighed quietly. "Happy…. That's a feeling I have when I am here. Here with you, with Zell, with Irvine, with Quistis."

"So you found no one in your life?" she questioned, quirking a brow.

I frowned as I considered those people I was surrounded with.

Yuffie, the young girl who professed herself to be the 'world's greatest ninja' was an innocent youth with a weakness for sugar and hyperactivity that couldn't be contained. She was irritating. Annoying. Aggravating. But somehow she was still a lovable girl, sweet to her core. Even when she insisted on calling me 'Squall' no matter how many times I attempted to rebel against my dark past and separate myself from the failure I had been; even when she berated me for avoiding my past and avoiding my true persona behind a false name.

Aerith, the lovely young woman with the wisdom of the worlds, whose love for flowers and light and life bled over to all who surrounded her. She was the most gentle being I'd ever encountered, lovely and delicate and oozing such frailty that a man couldn't help but lust to protect her from the wickedness of darkness. Yet she had a mischievous streak in her that was damned near a mile long, visible only in those casual grins and winks she granted to her oft-times coconspirator Yuffie. She was exceptional, willful and as unbending as iron when dedicated to an ideal or a purpose.

Cid, the gruff old man who'd saved my life in my younger days, who spent his time milling around with the mysterious gummi blocks and smoking his cigarettes. His snarling realism, his refusal to bend to the light and airy illusory giddiness that was woven by his other companions, was refreshing to say the very least. He was the solid foundation the entire gathering necessitated, the proverbial slap in the face when they needed to see that the world wasn't completely made of gumdrops and teddy bears. Yet despite his rough mannerism he was a kind and tender soul underneath, willing to reach out to any who had need of him whether they asked for his assistance or not.

Those three had been present in my life ever since I'd first been introduced to Traverse Town. They brought me comfort and companionship. With their strength they hardly had any need of my gunblade, but when the going got tough they readily welcomed my assistance. I wasn't necessary in their lives, but they still accepted me. I was grateful – but not necessarily happy.

Tifa, Barret and Red XIII were new introductions in my life, new arrivals at Hollow Bastion since its keyhole was locked away. Both humans were also residents of the grand fortress in their youth and transposed inhabitants of the Planet that contained their precious Midgar. They were a likable bunch, I suppose. Tifa had her smiles and her positive attitude, rather like Yuffie without the extreme giddiness – better said, rather like Yuffie with her feet nailed solidly to the floor and her head bludgeoned firmly out of the clouds. Barret was interesting to say the least; he had all of Cid's gruff attitude and more than his share of the old pilot's foul tongue, but he was incredibly energetic and single-minded when he got a goal stuck in his rather thick skull. Red XIII had to be the most odd phenomenon I'd seen; a strange creature that reminded me of what might result if a moomba mated with a dog – something of a wolf with his elongated muzzle and his rough build, a cat with his flame-tipped lion's tail and retractable claws, perhaps with a hint of hyena with that mane of his; he was nearly as wise as Aerith and as talkative as Tifa could be at times, as when the mood grabbed him he would hold a person in intellectual conversation for hours on end with his single good golden eye glittering with merriment.

They were enhancements to my environment – I even found myself enjoying conversations with Red XIII from time to time, or smirking helplessly at Barret's flailing, or sampling drinks Tifa would prepare for me because I just happened to look too miserable to make it through the rest of the day without alcohol. But I still couldn't say I was necessarily happy.

Rinoa sensed the mental debate I was having. "Squall? Aren't you forgetting someone?"

I was at first stunned that she knew what I was thinking. However, a moment of contemplation reminded me that she was indeed nothing more than a figment of my overwrought imagination and apparently fading consciousness, and thus would have complete access to everything within my mind. Instead of letting my brain continue to be befuddled, I instead sighed and turned my gaze to the heavens, rolling slightly to lay on my back and pulling my hand from her hip with my movement to lay it on the grass. The arm that was propping my head up slipped underneath her neck, serving her as a pillow as I sighed. "Forgetting someone?"

"Someone you met not that long ago. Someone who's garnered a spot in your heart, even though you refuse to acknowledge it."

I frowned at the blue sky that peeked through the foliage above us. "Only you have a place in my heart. You know that."

She huffed. "If that's true, then your heart is filled with nothing but darkness. You are so stubborn. Why don't you just admit it?"

I squeezed my eyes closed.

"Though I must say it rather surprised me. Selphie always suggested you might swing, but… really!"

I could feel my cheeks burn as I scoffed. "Rinoa, you can't believe-"

"You have good taste in men, at least!" she cleanly interrupted.

Even as I scowled, she laughed happily at my discomfort and rolled on top of me, hugging me tightly. Pressing her nose into the crook of my neck, she smiled, her facial expression easily detected by the brush of her lips over the pane of flesh my t-shirt left exposed. Clearing my throat as I rested my hands on the small of her back, I grunted. "Good taste in men, huh?"

"Yeah," she sighed as she got comfortable.

I grumped internally as I held her tenderly, my mind helplessly wandering down the path she'd forcibly kicked it onto. My brain was busily pondering what exactly it would feel like to have someone nearly my own height and weight cradled against me as Rinoa was, to feel thicker, stronger arms wrapped around my body and a not-so-delicate face pressed to my chest.

Great. Commence migraine.

As we relaxed in complete comfort, I found myself reflecting on my times with the one in my mind. How we'd met in the Coliseum lobby when Yuffie had dragged me along to participate in the newly opened Hades Cup and I took his offer for partnership instead. How we'd battled so completely in harmony with each other during those fights.

How I'd leapt into the most insane fight I could imagine waging when the blonde warrior had frozen, staring with wide eyes and nightmarish recollection of some prior encounter I'd not been present to witness as the gigantic triple-headed monstrous dog that was one of our challenges, standing directly between him and the creature with nothing more than my gunblade and my magic. How after I'd learned that the beast was not overly bothered by my spells as it was a bit of a wielder of flame itself I'd laid into it full force with Lionheart, forced to resort to firing it not once but twice to eliminate two of its massive heads. How I'd not berated my tournament partner for his lack of action and his obvious terror but rather laid my hands upon his shoulders and told him that the creature was gone, that everything was alright, and that I'd like to ensure he wasn't hurt.

That was the first night I'd taken his hand, leading him like a lost child to the public hot tub to relax. I'd eased him out of his clothing (he'd blushed considerably at this. I'd always pondered why he shied away – perhaps his experience in SOLDIER was different than my time in SeeD, and modesty was more expected of the troops of his world) and forced him to slip into the hot water, then knelt behind him to lightly kneed his shoulders. He'd taken so very long to relax, but when he did and he let his exhausted sigh leak from shyly smiling lips, the expression on his face was strangely gratifying. He didn't flinch away at all when I'd abandoned my towel and slid in beside him, groaning as the excruciatingly hot water lapped against my bruised and beaten flesh.

His concern for me was… comforting. At that moment, it had seemed that someone actually cared about me – not as a trophy from a demolished world or as an extra hand in the eternal fight against the Heartless, but as a human being who needed a soothing touch. He'd hissed when he'd laid his gaze on my lacerated chest (the beast managed to get a decent bite in), muttering that he'd be right back with bandages.

I'd grasped his hand as he'd attempted to leave, halting his progress. He'd flushed when I cast him a faint smile; a faint smile was all I could really manage since watching everything around me perish, but it apparently was enough for him. When I'd reassured him that I would be alright and my wounds would heal soon enough, he'd told me that I was being an idiot and I would sit still and wait for him to return with bandages.

I'd shocked myself by doing as he ordered, patiently waiting for him to return after I'd released him and he'd slipped out of the room. I surprised myself further by allowing him to bind my wounds, suppressing grimaces of pain as he pulled those wraps tight.

We'd been rather close since then, I suppose.

There was something about the blonde that I found… innocent. Naïve. Even though he'd been through so much pain and torment, his heart remained unscathed and pure.

Through everything; his doubts about himself and his creation and his purpose, his nights filled with sobbing over the deaths of friends and would-be lovers at the hands of old acquaintances, his outer hardness developed by his slim two decades of life and tests and trials, he was still so very fragile upon the inside.

I suppose, perhaps, that in some fashion he reminded me of what I may have been like if things had been different.

Maybe that's why I feel so driven to protect him.

In him I see so much potential for good, so much purity in expression. I lost that, giving myself to my anguish, clawing my way up from the base of the abyss I'd cast myself into during my teenage years only to allow the Heartless to proverbially boot me right back in when the Garden fell and took everyone I'd ever loved with it. Every expression I have is carefully monitored, designed not to give false hope or promise yet unwilling to betray the true turmoil that roils throughout my tattered soul. When he feels anything, it's easily seen. His smile was so bright, so warm, so full when his friends from his Planet arrived in Cid's gummi. He wore his shame for his past failures openly before Aerith prior to her finally convincing him that he was forgiven and turning those bashful simpers into soft chuckles and light smiles. His emotions are open and visible for the world to see; his embarrassment, his joy, his sorrow. I've been broken for far too long to achieve that purity ever again.

Somewhere in the base of my being I wanted to prevent him from becoming what I am – a cynical, snide, hateful and hopeless man who's doggedly avoiding his past because it's nothing but a slew of failures splayed across a plain of sorrows.

I wanted Cloud to stay as Cloud was.

"I knew it," Rinoa quietly breathed against my shirt, laughing quietly.

"Of course you did. You're part of this world, which is-"

"Entirely engineered by your will?" she cleanly finished, lifting her head so she could smile brightly at my face. "Still, allow me to celebrate this."

"Celebrate?" I quietly mused. "Celebrate what?"

"Celebrate the fact that you've realized that your heart may indeed be capable of love again before you've passed completely from the living world," she quietly said, tilting her head slightly to allow her hair to cascade across her neck and spill over my side.

I blinked. Reflecting on what I'd been mulling over, I felt my cheeks tinge slightly.

She was right.

I wanted to protect him.

I wished to protect everyone at Hollow Bastion, but above all I wished to never again see his look of terror, to see him hurt to such an extent that his next encounter with something similar to that which defeated him would strike such fear into his heart as to freeze him in place.

I wanted… to be near him.

His was the only presence I could tolerate for exorbitantly long periods of time, and indeed oft times the only presence I would seek out for training, conversation or simple silent companionship.

When he was present, I was….

I was happy.

Was I falling in love again?

Lifting a hand to lightly pinch the bridge of my nose, I sighed quietly even as Rinoa hummed a soft affirmation to my self-projected question.

I remembered what happened to the only other person I'd completely given my heart to.

My other arm slid more solidly around her frame and squeezed her tightly.

"Squall, don't be afraid," she whispered.

"I can't help it," I muttered.

"It's frightening, but are you willing to try again? For him?"

I pondered.

"For him… I'll try my best."

"Then reach for your consciousness, Squall. Reach now, or you'll be too faded to regain it."

Nodding once, I reached with everything I had towards the billowing twilight of reality.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: There. Clarification. And a vain attempt to tie FF8 to KH. Bleargh. And everyone who hates Rinoa can just back down. I despise the perfect freaking Mary Sue too, but I'm not about to start randomly character bashing. I find that rather silly. Just because I wished throughout FF8 that she'd take a flying leap off Balamb Garden into shark-infested waters doesn't mean that I'm going to butcher her character and/or have Squall hating her ever-livid guts. Sorry, folks, but they were _very in love._ End of story. Deny it all you like, but play FF8 and see the truth for yourself. It's just whether or not Squall can get over her Kingdom Hearts loss and move on to greener pastures that can be interesting. :)

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Suggestions? Complaints? Glomp the plushie! (tosses it from her profile page) Follow the link – Submit! 


	11. Captured

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 11  
The Heartless – Captured

The angel had been defeated, vanishing in a fancy array of color and light. The one who had made the emblem that called the one-winged creature had retreated into the shadows after being waylaid by the people that came after the feathered person's arrival.

I'd been inadvertently rescued by those people. Despite my safety being an accidental byproduct of their fight, I was grateful.

That warm feeling that filled my empty chest froze when I saw my rescuers gather on the small imitation of a shoreline with its odd crystal pedestal. They were very upset.

I'd panicked when they first ran into the fight arena. As it had been with the first arrival, the man who'd been skewered by the angel from the emblem, I was uncertain of their intentions towards me. The man in the robes who held me captive in his hand had been watching the fight between the angel and the demon-winged fighter who'd dropped from the sky above. He'd started casting spells to separate them and help the one he'd called to assist him against the man who'd arrived with his odd sword, ignoring my struggling without thought.

Then the small gathering arrived. The girl with the short black hair dropped from the sky too, throwing her metal stars after separating the angel and the demon. She'd turned her attention to the one who tried to attack the leather-winged blonde man and struck against him. The old man with the short blonde hair and the squinted eyes dropped from the same sky with a spear, piercing the angel who's aqua eyes had been entirely focused on the man with his spiky hair. He'd been brushed away with a slashing swipe of the monster's huge sword, throwing him towards the struggle that was happening between my captor and the girl. The woman with brown hair dressed in pink just seemed to appear, casting her healing magic on the man who'd been slashed. She then turned her offensive magic towards the robed man who held me, first casting some sort of whirling wind around my body. I'd been frightened, by the winds slashed my captor instead of me, so he dropped me and allowed me to run away.

They'd fought valiantly with magic and weapons, forcing him to retreat quickly into the shadows. He vanished as those who wear the robes can.

The battle between the combatants who'd taken their fight to the air intensely raged on, encouraging those who'd fought the robed man to join in and leave me to hide. I took their inattention as an opportunity to dash to the nearest rock formation I could locate and flatten myself upon it.

The blonde with the wing and the angel had ended up atop a tall rock spire. The girl with the metal stars had tried to follow only to be blasted by a spell. She landed hard on the water even as the old man with his spear started to clumsily ascend the side of the spire, hauling the woman in pink with him.

I tried to approach the girl. Something inside of me wanted to ensure she was alright.

I immediately scrambled back to the rock when she'd stood up and shook her head, staggering gracelessly a few steps before yelling angrily at the spire's occupants. She started to bolt back towards the rock, tossing something into the air to let its contents spill over her on the way – a soft green glow surrounded her, slowly healing a few of her wounds.

Prying myself from the rock once more, I stared at the glass vial that rolled on the solid water, a few drops of green liquid still inside of it.

Shuffling almost immediately to my right got my attention. Turning, I stared with panicked eyes, expecting to see the robed man again.

I was shocked when I saw that the man who'd been run through by the angel's sword had struggled to his feet, leaning heavily against the nearest wall with his sword hanging limply in his fingers. He lifted a tired gaze to stare at the top of the spire where the battlers were all coagulating.

After he'd flung that sword of his with eerie accuracy, he toppled forward lifelessly. The girl who'd been scaling after the old man and the woman in pink noticed the weapon while it was still airborne, her eyes growing huge and her frame dropping from the rock's face. She hit the water on her feet and bolted towards the projectile's source.

She'd collapsed to her knees beside him, lightly laying a hand on his back. Her attention was so focused on his body that she never noticed me standing but ten feet away. A few moments later she shook his still frame, saying something over and over, every cry getting louder and more hysterical.

I instantly fell to the ground, flat as an ordinary shadow on the surface when the blonde with the spiky hair suddenly landed beside her, his demon's wing vanishing and his cape fluttering dramatically around his body.

Separating myself from the ground a good distance away and hiding behind a projection of stone, I watched as he gathered the fallen body into his arms and started quietly crying, his nose buried in brunet hair. I listened as his cries became as the girl's were, flooded with disbelief and anxiety, his voice loud and broken as he shouted at the body in his arms.

Soon the woman in pink and the man with the spear were there too. The old man was pale, his knuckles white from gripping his weapon so hard, his mouth moving without sound. The woman covered her eyes with her hands and began to cry.

I guess they ran out of magic in the course of their fights.

So they were crying instead.

A frivolous, useless activity. They should have been trying to save his life. I could see it was still there – his heart had yet to flee his body. Couldn't they?

Or were they crying because they had no means to keep him alive?

I couldn't understand what they were saying. I couldn't understand what they were sobbing. All I understood was the incredible sadness that fell over the gathering.

I remembered the vial.

Running unnoticed onto the water, I grabbed that almost empty vial. Then, taking a few moments to gather what little courage I have in my stooped frame, I made my way back to the shore where the party was mourning their apparent loss.

Three of the four glowered at me. The old man went so far as to point the tip of his spear at me.

The woman in pink stared, then she gasped when she noticed what was in my claws.

Offering her the vial, I quaked nervously as she excitedly spoke to the others then took the glass vessel and poured the remains of the green fluid over the fallen man's horrible wound.

The liquid wasn't enough to restore his consciousness, but they all sighed breaths of relief when his chest slowly rose and fell, breath and heartbeat restored.

The spiky-haired blonde hefted the brunet's still body in his arms, walking towards that crystal pedestal on the shore. The girl with the short black hair bounced excitedly after him. The old man looked at me, his stern blue eyes softening slightly before he smiled and walked after them.

The lady in pink offered me her hand.

I stared at it.

What was she doing?

I didn't understand.

Mindful of my hesitation, she reached for me, lightly taking my hand, leading me to follow her.

I was captured, but for some reason I wasn't afraid.

_-tbc-_

Review replies:

DarkStarPhoenix: Hey, not a problem. I like the privilege of reviewing new stories that don't suck. (grin) As for what a Mary Sue/Gary Stue is, it's a shallow, moronic, too-perfect-for-reality heroine/hero that's all but worthless, uber-goody-two-shoes, white-magic wielding (a prerequisite in Square games) twit that everyone is mandated to fall in love with, especially the stoic/hateful main protagonist. For example, Queen Minnie in KH2 could be construed as a Mary Sue when you get to play with her – she does nothing to protect herself but scream for Sora to come to her aid, casts white magic when prompted, is beloved by everyone, and can't do anything without direction from the protagonist of the story to save her stupid li'l life (don't get me wrong. I love Minnie. I just wanted to scream during that part of the freaking game – the throne room battle made me cry tears of blood even though it only took me one try to get through). On to the next question, they didn't explain crap in CoM. All CoM consisted of was filler material to tie KH1 to KH2. It was the entire Castle Oblivion bit, so Leon there was actually nothing more than a product of Sora's memories. The happenings of Balamb's fall come straight from my depraved imagination. And thanks for stopping with the growling… though I'm pretty certain it'll start up again soon. (sheepish grin) Glad you liked that chapter – it's my personal favorite.

Dark Mog: Wow, I feel privileged! Multiple reviews for a fic from a person who doesn't normally do that? Cool. (flush) Yeah, I've noticed the rather bland trend with FF8 slash too. I've noticed the same with KH slash where Kairi gets tossed completely to the side. I guess some people just hate dealing with the bushes of the games. (snicker) Thanks for the feedback concerning Rinoa, though. I do greatly appreciate! After all, when a person would like to see the character die repeatedly (and makes it happen in her game), it's hard for that person to really take that character seriously when attempting to write her correctly. And the Cloud reminiscing was just pure on-the-fly inspiration. But it'll be revisited later. I've really come to like the thought of them lounging nude together in a hot tub. (cackle) Thanks again for the review!

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Standard fare – feedback of any sort? (hefts plushie from profile page and yanks pullstring) Submit! 


	12. Morning

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 12  
The Keyblade Master – Morning

Kairi….

I saw her standing on the beach on Destiny Islands, her hands lightly clasped behind her back, her eyes facing towards the sea. She was watching the crystalline waves slowly roll in and out, her soft indigo eyes catching the light of the sun; her full pink lips curled into a gentle and appreciative smile. Her feet shuffled in the glistening white sand. Her skirt whipped delicately about her shapely, pale legs as the zephyrs that coasted in from the ocean raced around her and teased her skin. Her dark red hair played cheerfully around her heart-shaped face, strands catching on her cheeks and brushing over her eyebrows.

Kairi…!

It suddenly became all the more real, all the more genuine. I could hear the waves pummeling the shore, the sound soft yet omnipresent. The wind rustled the thick leaves of the palm trees and the sprawling bushes. The distant seagulls crying to one another as they circled on the lazy ocean breezes. I could feel the heat of the high sun beating down on me, the grains of sand underneath my lounging body and in my spiked hair, the soft hiss of misted water sliding over me each time a wave crashed unceremoniously against the shore.

"Kairi!" I cried out as I bolted upright, my hands instantly springing behind myself to brace my upper body upright. I stared at her with wide eyes.

Was it possible? Was I somehow home?

Of course not.

I blinked a few times as realization washed over me. I must have fallen asleep after that long night of searching for Heartless and overhearing that odd, wicked Doctor's plans to butcher the gentle dragon Elliott. I was probably by the shore.

Still my dream responded to my actions, Kairi turning and smiling happily at me. "Sora!" she cried out. "You lazy bum. Always sleeping instead of doing what you promised."

I furrowed my brow. "Hey, I've been trying to get back. I promised that I'd come back to you."

"You still have to give me back my lucky charm, after all, " she prettily quipped, her eyes closed and her nose wrinkling as she grinned.

"Yeah!" I proclaimed, flashing my trademark grin back at her.

Even though it was a dream, everything seemed so real, so very right.

"Heh. Guess I don't fit in here anymore, do I?"

I started, my jaw dropping slightly as my eyes sprang wide open. That smooth voice didn't belong to Kairi at all. It was masculine. It was sleek. It was….

"Riku?"

Looking around wildly, I tried to catch a glimpse of him. Some sort of vision of him in the dream I was indulging in. Some glance of him before he'd run out of the woods and tackle me in front of Kairi, embarrassing me before her like usual preceding the part of my dream, reminiscent of reality, where he'd start his outrageous flirting, leaving me to eat sand and pout.

The harder I looked, the mort desperate I became. He had to be here….

The island beach slowly faded away.

My eyes refused to shrink in size. Rather, they grew in immensity as I watched that radiant sand fade into nothing, that crystal water become part of that black pallet, those trees slowly vanish altogether. The sounds that had assaulted my senses, the heat that had graced my skin, the gentle scents of fish and sea and sand and sweat faded from my atmosphere, being replaced with nothing.

I was sitting in a void, a soundless vat of nothing. Patting below me, I started as I discovered that there wasn't any tangible flooring.

"Kairi!" I cried out, turning back to where I remembered her being.

Her eyes were large as she reached towards me, her voice panicked as she called my name. "Sora! Come back!" she cried.

I tried to lunge for her.

My hand passed straight through hers even as she became nothing as all else had.

I shivered violently, wrapping my arms around myself. It was so cold… so still… so silent….

The memories I had of this place were too real for me to escape them. Falling, falling, falling endlessly into darkness, feeling my memories, my mind, my very soul and heart being eclipsed. Bearing witness to the slow degradation of the light of my heart, feeling my body move eerily under my beckons, disjointed and unfamiliar.

It was a horrible nightmare I continually tried to forget but couldn't. And my dream had thrown me back into that dreaded situation.

My voice was meek. "Why…?" I whispered, rubbing my arms with my bare fingers and gloved palms.

Soft, warm breath lightly brushed over my neck. I instantly froze.

"You want to go back home. Why don't you?"

That voice…!

"Riku!" I exclaimed happily as I turned, trying to catch a glimpse of him, to touch him at last.

I saw and touched nothing.

However, his voice was still present at my side, his very essence supportive and strong behind me. "Didn't you promise her that you'd go back to her?"

"But-"

"And you promised me that you'd look after her."

I froze, my breath catching in my throat.

His voice was surprisingly desolate, its substantial presence fading slightly. "Why are you out here, Sora? Why do you seek the darkness?"

"I'm looking for you," I meekly replied.

"I'm not with the King anymore. We were separated when the doors slammed shut. Your friends' mission doesn't involve me in its folds anymore."

I cringed, squeezing my eyes shut against the foreboding darkness that loomed around me. "All the more reason for me to find you, if you're without him by your side. If you're in this horrible, cold place."

"Don't."

My eyes opened once again, desperately seeking him despite the knowledge that I would forever be unable to do so in this dreamscape. "Why do you say that? You're without protection, Riku! I've got to find you!"

The tone was heavy, quiet, sullen. It was hardly my Riku at all – the smug arrogance and cynical teasing bite was completely gone. The voice speaking was the child I remember meeting in the evenings and searching for adventure with, the quiet and oddly meek boy whose incredible bravery seemed almost forced upon him by some cruel situation I couldn't being to understand.

"It's already too late, Sora. Turn back while you can. Don't let the darkness consume you any more than it already has. You've already lost so much that is precious to you without even truly realizing it. Already the path is lacking what could truly be known as 'you'."

I puzzled over what he was saying. "Riku…?"

"Give up."

The defeat in that tone made me snarl. "Riku, you idiot! What makes you think I'm going to give up? Especially when I can hear you now! I must be close, right? There really IS a door here! You're close, right?"

"No, Sora."

I paused my rant. "But… then… why?"

"Because this is your dream. This is your consciousness, looking for answers while you slumber. And I am your answer."

"So you're saying that you're my true desire? That…." I frowned, getting more and more angry about every statement that came from his sinfully smooth voice. "You're saying that I want to give up? Well, here's some news for you, Riku! I'm not giving up! Ever! If I have to search to the ends of the worlds, if I have to walk through Kingdom Hearts itself, I WILL find you! And I'm not going back to Destiny Islands until I'm dragging you with me!"

The darkness burst into light.

I was staring at blue skies above, soft white clouds slowly inching their way towards the land.

Blinking, I rubbed my eyes. I immediately regretted the action, whimpering as I'd just ground sand into my face. "Darn it!" I simpered even as I sat up.

I yawned heftily. Apparently I'd woken up.

Looking around, I quickly got my bearings. I'd fallen asleep on the beech right outside of the cave system the gummi was parked in. The lighthouse was glistening beautifully in the light of the newly crested sun's brilliant orange rays.

As I hauled myself to my feet, I grumbled as I reflected on my dream. Was that really my heart speaking to me? Could my spirit already be telling me to give up?

Hmph. Impossible. It's only been a couple months since we were separated.

A small part of my mind nagged that a couple months was more than enough time for Riku to meet his untimely end, for Kairi to get bored waiting for me back home. I snarled and shoved those thoughts away.

Stretching my fingers towards the heavens, I let my mouth sling open in yet another mighty yawn. Smacking my lips, grimacing as my stomach growled angrily at me, I rubbed my abdomen and stared blearily at the slight sliver of yellow that was peaking over the ripples that were the ocean's morning waves. The sun was rising.

I blinked, turning towards the lighthouse again. I thought I'd heard the door open and slam shut.

Moments later, I was grinning as I saw Pete waving at me and jogging easily down the sandy path towards the caves, his feet bare and his coveralls-clad body still wet from the bath he'd apparently taken. "Morning!" he called out brightly.

"Morning to you, too," I greeted with a wide and pleasant grin.

"I looked for you last night. I thought that maybe you'd want some dinner, especially if you're staying in the caves with your boat."

I stared at him. "Eh…" I tried to begin, rubbing the back of my head rather sheepishly, "you know about that?"

Pete smiled pleasantly and nodded, his red locks flopping about his eyes. "Yep. Elliott told me last night."

"Oh! He came back?"

"So you really DID meet him!" Pete exclaimed, his face lighting up with joy.

"Yeah, sure did. He's impressive," I said with an easy smile.

"And what he said is true? That you're here to help with the fishing grounds' problem, and he's going to help you out?"

Still rubbing the back of my head, I looked at my sneakers. Well, there was enough truth behind that, especially if the Heartless were involved as I suspected they were. "Sure enough," I said after a slight delay, nodding firmly. "I think I might have an idea as to what's going on. Elliott'll be a great help if he decides to do so," I added.

"Really? So what's going on?" Pete innocently inquired.

"It's… complicated," I attempted to whimper, trying my best to avoid a direct answer. "Let's just say that I think something rather rotten is going on in town."

He looked rather confused for a few minutes.

"Let me just say this. I think there's a real threat here to Elliott, you and Passamaquoddy," I quietly stated, my voice becoming solid and serious. "Just be on the lookout, alright?"

"You mean… the Gogans?" he whispered, his innocent blue eyes widening considerably.

I hadn't seen the hillbillies he'd described so animatedly in his tale concerning his initial meeting with his draconic guardian, but what the heck? "Maybe them too. And someone much worse."

"Well, Elliott'll take care of them," he said with a firm nod.

I smiled at his conviction. "I'm certain he will. I just want to make sure that my suspicions are right, though, you know?"

"Oh, I understand completely," he said in a happy, breathy voice. "Sometimes Elliott can get a bit carried away."

"I can see how that would be a problem," I chirped.

"So anyway! I came down here because I was wondering if you'd had-"

My stomach grumbled. Flushing, I immediately clenched my jumper in front of the offending area of my body.

Pete just laughed, his freckled cheeks dimpled with the intensity of his smile. "I guess you haven't had breakfast, after all. I told Nora that Elliott told me you were down here. She said it'd be fine to have you up for breakfast!"

I blinked a few times before what he was saying finally impacted fully on my sleep-dredged brain. "Breakfast? In the lighthouse?"

"Yeah! We're having pancakes."

My mouth was instantly watering.

Pancakes…. Mmmmmmm.

"I'm there!" I happily replied, running along with him as he bolted towards the lighthouse with a laugh.

It was during the morning meal that I got to finally meet the woman in white that had been escorting Pete to school. Nora was a nice lady – a dreamer, a caretaker, and a best friend all rolled into one surprisingly earth-bound package. Lampie, her father, was an interesting character to say the least – he was what I imagined Cid would be like in about twenty years without the profanity and a few extra beers in his gut to make him plump like the pleasant lighthouse keeper.

After stuffing my face with pancakes Pete arbitrarily headed outside. Inside of the lighthouse's comfortable interior, I leaned back in my chair and pleasantly patted my content tummy. "Thank you so much for the great breakfast, Ms. Nora. Lampie." I grinned brightly.

"Oh, no need to thank us, Sora. You're a friend of Pete's, aren't you?" Nora said, one of her eyebrows arching slightly and her lips curling into a trusting smile.

"Yep. Guess I am," I said pleasantly.

"Then you wouldn't mind telling us a bit about his past," she stated, her voice suddenly so deadpan and matter-of-fact that I almost fell right out of my chair.

"A-actually, it's a recent acquaintance," I admitted, my grin sheepish. "I didn't know him before school."

She arched the other brow, leaning forward a bit. "School? I don't remember seeing you in his class."

"Eh… neh," I stated, turning my gaze from Nora's serious face to the window, looking over towards the foghorn and Pete. "What's going on over there? Isn't that the Doctor and his assistant from town?"

Nora turned on her heel, looking out. "Now what's going on?" she lightly bit as she left the area.

Shaking my head, I looked back at Lampie. "She's quite a girl, sir."

Lampie smirked at me and shook his head even as he nursed a flask of something I could smell from even where I was sitting. How he managed to sit up straight from what Nora had told us over breakfast about his nighttime condition was a miracle I couldn't begin to fathom. And he was warding off that inevitable hangover with more alcohol, it seemed. "That she is. Stubborn all around, my Nora. Keeps her feet on the ground, even though her head's so far up in the clouds she can't see reality around her."

"What do you mean by that?"

"We all know Paul's not coming back," Lampie quietly said.

"Paul…?"

"Well, you see-" he'd begun. The moment he'd started his statement, though, his voice was barreled over by the horrendously loud blare of the lighthouse's enormous foghorn.

"Fog!" he instantly blurted, bolted out of the front door of the lighthouse without bothering to look through the small porthole-like windows at the crystalline conditions that actually made up the serene coastline.

I shook my head at the silliness of it all even as I noted the stalwart Doctor and his brown-suited assistant from the wagon back in Passamaquoddy's center staggering away.

Rising from my seat, I wiped my hands off on a napkin and hastily cleaned up as much as I was capable – I got the dishes to the sink, the extra food set near the counter and the table straightened with its chairs pushed in. Really, I didn't know where anything else goes. Satisfied to my contribution to help repay a smidgen of their kindness for the morning meal, I made to leave.

Even as I stepped outside, I was almost slapped in the face with a paintbrush full of white paint. "What the…?" I started.

"Oh! Sorry!" Pete exclaimed before turning back to the lighthouse's wall.

Oooooohhhhhhh. Whitewashing. I was more than familiar with this work. Necessary to preserve buildings at the oceanfront.

As much as I would have liked to have stayed to help, the matter of the lack of Heartless the night before was still nagging heavily on my mind. I wanted to get back to the gummi and check up with Donald on any changes that he noted, and possibly give the radar system another trial run by scanning the town again.

After all, either it was malfunctioning or the Heartless managed to escape me.

"Well, I'd love to say, but I've got… work to do on my boat," I said.

Well, it was true enough!

"I understand," Pete said with a grin. "It's alright. I like this anyway! Have fun with whatever you're doing in the caves!"

"Sure will," I said, attempting to smile pleasantly. The world I had to do was nowhere near fun. It was necessary for the survival of the peoples' peaceful world.

With a series of waves, I bid Pete, Nora and Lampie a good day and hastily made my way down the shoreline to the cave system with our gummi.

Donald and I had a lot of work to do.

_-tbc-_

Review replies:

littlekittykat: Well, the fast updates are destined to slow soon enough, most unfortunately. I've only got 5 more chapters completed for editing – then it's back to writing raw stuff, and stuff for other stories I've been working on. But this story's destined to get a lot of attention due to the amount of reviews it's gotten! And as for that Heartless, he _is_ an odd little character – makes it challenging and fun to write at the same time. :) Thanks for the review!

andromeda90: Aw, I'm loved now? I'm happy! (gush) Yeah, cliffhangers have the same effect on me too. Glad they aren't pissing you off. (laugh) Thanks for continuing to read and review – it's greatly appreciated! And expect more Squally-boy. After all, I love him to bits, even though I torment him like crazy. (smirk)

DarkStarPhoenix: Yep, the bat-wing sword's called Soul Eater, and it's Riku's primary weapon for, like, ever. He also uses it in the cut scene when he first meets up with Sora. Silly people like me who gush over Riku because he reduces the overall wank factor of Kingdom Hearts have those suckers saved on dedicated memory cards. (laughs, flushes) And having Mickey in the main battle against the darkball, I think, would be an improvement. As said, that's just my bias. To answer your question, the robed man was one of the guys we get the pleasure of facing in KH:CoM – a member of Organization XIII, Vexen. He's an annoying twerp who laughs wayyyy too often, and is responsible for the creation of Riku Replica, the only boss that laid the smack-down on my Sora with 8-billion dark aura attacks that I hadn't been prepared to break. Grrr. Needless to say, I hate Vexen. And fighting a guy who likes freezing the ground so you slide around and can't attack effectively is a royal pain. Blue Mountains? Nope, don't know where they are. (sheepish grin) But then again, I'd have to go on a West-Pac to visit your country, and I'm on the east coast right now – only west coasters get to go there. Wish I'd gotten stationed in my home state of California instead of freaking Virginia. (shakes fist at Virginia)

polynesia: New reviewer? Cool! Thanks for taking the time to R&R, first off. Secondly, mind telling the name of the 'bubbly blondie' fic so I can avoid it like a plague? Gah! Horrifying! Actually, my lack of 'cutesifying' and my excessive longing for intelligent plot is what's gotten a whole lot of lack of attention to my Gundam works. It makes me happy to see that the same isn't really being repeated here! And thank you SO much for your comments about this being correct. That makes me incredibly happy – trying to keep a story feeling like the game is, in my opinion, one of the hardest things to accomplish. Sure I can keep the characters feeling like the characters by throwing them into a 'real world' alternate universe fic, but actually keeping the game dynamics is another story. And more of KH2, eh? Well, I can see that. (rubs back of her head) I guess Chain of Memories scarred my wee little brain and I bent more towards the feel of that than KH1. (laughs) BTW, Riku mode of CoM kicks so much ass it's unbelievable. (fingers twitch) And I'm glad you're following and enjoying this, even with your… eh… lack of experience as to the material I'm using! Hopefully I can pull the same feat in the next area Sora visits, as only old-timers like me will probably know the movie I'll be using there. (sweatdrop) Ansem plushie! Steal the picture if you like. It's on my profile page. (laughs) I _swear_ I'm going to figure out how to sew one and make that thing one day! (considers dissecting her Kamui plushie to learn)

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Complaints? Compliments? (smack wit' da plushie, which barks out 'SUBMIT!') Yeah. What he said. 


	13. Disruption

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 13  
The Flower Girl – Disruption

It's been three days now since the surprising summon that disrupted what was an ordinary, calm day here at Hollow Bastion.

We were all a bit rattled still, I suppose. None of us had expected to see him again.

Mr. Highwind, predictably, was the most animated in his lamentations about Sephiroth's arrival. There was hardly a moment when he wasn't spouting some vulgarity about our unexpected and uninvited guest's appearance.

Yuffie was torn between excitement and misery. She was reasoning that if he still existed, then perhaps the Planet was back as well – but the outcome of the attack made her somber once again.

Red was saddened by the fact that he wasn't able to make it down to the battle in time to help us, granting quiet lamentations about the fact that his possession of material may have helped turn the tide of what happened in the watery cavern below. He was sulking terribly, spending time staring at the result of his inaction and slinking about Hollow Bastion's halls in silent restitution.

I was shaken considerably. Both Sephiroth and I, connected to the Planet through the Life Stream, were a part of one another – we were polar opposites, light and dark, necessary to one another's existence. I had known somewhere deep within my heart that he still lived somewhere, even as I know within my soul that the Planet is still encased in darkness, its heart absorbed by the blackness Sora is striving so hard to completely lock away. Home has yet to be restored; I had hoped in vain that the same could be said of Jenova's son, but… apparently I was wrong. He'd been encountered by one who could summon, cloned by darkness as he had been by Shinra and brought to harass us once more. I should have known that if I could be restored, expelled by the Life Stream as it was overtaken by shadow to allow my heart to be protected from Kingdom Hearts' depths, that Sephiroth would escape too. Balance had to be maintained.

Cloud wasn't speaking to any of us, keeping his silent vigil over Leon constantly, going so far as to skip meals to remain by his side and fall asleep with his head on the fallen warrior's arm and their fingers interlaced.

It was Cloud I was most concerned about.

He was slowly wasting away, his hope fleeing his heart with every passing hour of each passing day. The Cloud I'd once known and loved, the kind young man who was a bit biting and demanding when in stressful situations or in battle, the person who would go to any length to ensure that his dearest friends were safe, the soul who professed not to care about the outside world but in reality was hiding a caring so deep that it pained him to watch all that occurred around him and not be able to affect it, was fading. His late arrival was, to him, a failure. Last time I looked into his Mako eyes they were so miserable that I had to turn away and leave the room lest I burst into tears myself.

After all, Leon had yet to awaken. The others were distraught and disturbed, not understanding how it could possibly be. The Potion we'd quickly administered had kept him from dying that first night. The next morning, my curing magic replenished, I tended to his wounds and poured my energy into every bruise and open gash that existed on his frame, restoring his tissue and blood carefully and expertly. He should have regained his consciousness, the others reasoned.

They couldn't see the truth behind the attack. Sephiroth is my balance. As I am the light of our departed Planet, he is its darkness as is any summoned clone of him. The consequences behind that wound were more diabolical than the physical damage rendered.

That strike poured darkness into his heart. He had to fight through that if he was to awaken – and knowing what I did of Leon from the faint time we've spent together in Traverse Town, following the topple of Hollow Bastion and the fall of the Planet and our gathering in that lost land, he had so many demons already plaguing his soul that any further induction into lightless shadow might destroy his resolve to return. The very act of living seemed to pain him, forcing him to face his failures day in and day out. If his way to return to us were clouded as I suspect it was by Sephiroth's touch, then he could well be lost to us forever.

I couldn't help but sigh as I slid from the wing that held our living chambers and made my way with quiet steps towards the library. Emerging from the long passageway into the open expanse of the entrance hall, I lifted my gaze to stare at the braziers burning brlightly above me.

I felt tears in my eyes yet again.

Everything I knew, everything I loved, was falling apart around me. And to make matters worse, there was nothing I could do to prevent it.

My friends were so very upset that their normal joyful activities of harassing each other had fallen to the wayside, Yuffie no longer aggravating Cid to the point that he'd chase the wily ninja around the grounds, Red no longer scoffing at the two and lambasting them for their immaturity before joining in the fun. The aviator was taking to locking himself in the gummi garage, cleaning shining blocks with pristine rags rather than assembling new crafts. Instead of devoting his imagination to his creations, he was mourning the loss of the friend we've come to know and love during our time together. Yuffie was attempting to remain cheerful, but the breaks in her mask were so very visible whenever she was distracted enough to mention her Squall. Her voice would crack and her glee would fade completely, her eyes misting over even as she tried to maintain a smile on her lips while professing that he would get better or she'd kick his moping butt. Red just silently watched the still frame of his newest friend, no quick replies to any questions or lust for conversation or exchanging wisdom coming from him at all.

Those three, despite their incredible strength and emotional fortitude, were broken. They were sad. The cheer they normally bring was noticeably lacking as they mourned their loss, discounting our friend as already being dead or inevitably traveling down that path.

Cloud was tearing himself apart, fading away with worry and neglect. He really is such a delicate person, so very fragile inside, contrasting sharply with his oft times cold and stolid exterior. I knew well that once he dedicated his heart to another, he focused every ounce of his devotion to that person. He'd done so with me – my fall at Sephiroth's hands nearly shattered him. If not for the support of the gathering of friends we'd collected during our journey, I'm convinced he would have fallen to his own sadness. He kept his distance from everyone else – he maintained Tifa as his most cherished childhood friend, Yuffie as a merry companion, Barret and Cid and Red and Cait Sith as close comrades. He refused for so long to allow anyone close to his heart. Even once I'd met him again, once I'd explained how it was possible for us to embrace one another in the living world, he kept me as his dearest friend and his appointed ward for protection. He wouldn't let me get close again, fearing the day we would be parted again. But Leon had managed to weasel his way into Cloud's crystalline heart somehow, and it was killing my beloved to watch him die before his Mako eyes, yet another victim of my counterpart's sword.

Tifa and Barret arrived the day after the incidental summoning. They'd been shocked at the mournful atmosphere around Hollow Bastion; they'd been stricken when I told them what had occurred. Tifa had bowed her head in quiet respect before asking where Leon was resting so that she might visit him and Cloud. Barret had burst into a tirade about how he wished the one-winged angel was still around our fortification so that he could, as he so colorfully put it, fill him with a bucket full of lead revenge.

Tifa had seated herself beside Cloud, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as he sat perfectly still, his rough hands holding Leon's with so much tenderness. She'd just rested her head on his shoulder and told him that it was alright; he'd bowed his head and, once again, started to cry, pressing his nose against Leon's slim fingers. I'd carefully separated myself from the sullen environment, leaving the two to comfort one another.

I knew Tifa would care for him. They grew up together – it was because of her that he strove so hard to enter SOLDIER; it was because of him that she was able to maintain her hopes and dreams. She loved him dearly, her feelings for him extending far beyond those of friendship; he cared for her so deeply that I had expected romance rather than the almost sibling-like arrangement they hold between themselves. They bolstered and supported each other through the toughest of times – she held him together when he lost me to Sephiroth, he held her together when they lost Midgar and the Planet, before they'd been separated by the turmoil caused by the Heartless' invasion of our segment of space.

Barret, after expressing his initial anger at his lack of presence for Sephiroth's unexpected arrival, had been especially mindful of the rest of us. Underneath that hard exterior of his, like Cloud, rests a tender and caring heart. Ever since Marlene vanished with Midgar he's been so protective of the rest of us – he'd refused to let Tifa journey on her own to examine the star that was fading from existence that she'd noticed a month before Sora had arrived, and informed her that she wouldn't be boarding one of Cid's gummi ships without him present to protect her (he laughingly told Cloud that he was, ahem, too much of a sissy bitch to help her). He was always at all of our sides, vowing to protect us all, and was especially mindful of myself, Tifa and Yuffie. At first Leon was met with some suspicion; I suppose Barret saw him as competition for leadership of our little gathering. However, once Leon had proven himself as the incredible leader he is during a short sortie onto another world to look for survivors to rescue, Barret had graciously stepped down and clapped Leon upon his shoulder, stating that he'd follow this apparent 'natural leader' anytime (much to Leon's disgust).

These last couple days, Barret's been especially helpful to me. With the consequences of Sephiroth's appearance heavy on my shoulders and my renewed focus on the condition of our Planet firm in my heart, the weight of the darkness that envelopes our home can be so much to bear. The pain of our world is so great. I can barely stand hearing its cries, its wails of agony, its crushing whimpers barreling from my heart. My smile is maintained serene for my friends – with Leon's topple the others fail to notice how forced it is – but Barret's been surprisingly empathic towards me. He sighs when he sees my strained expression and tenderly wraps his left arm around me, holding me close and giving me that firm shoulder of his to release my tears on, that soft shirt of his to cry into.

As a scuff sounded to my left, I turned my head and hastily wiped my tears away. I didn't want to be caught sobbing my own woes by my friends. I was supposed to be strong, firm, the gentle angel to everyone gathered at Hollow Bastion here to bolster everyone's spirits. I was the Cetra returned from the Life Stream, the representative of light from our darkness-encased home. I felt as if I had to smile for everyone to lift their shattered souls.

I blinked as I saw what had caused the noise. A quiet sigh escaped me even as I felt my lips curl into a real smile vice the one I had been attempting to force upon my mouth.

The little Shadow that had brought the vial had found me in the entrance hall, shuffling shyly towards me. I smiled as I knelt, smoothing out my skirt as I put my knees to the floor. I held out my hand to it, nodding encouragingly. "Come on," I quietly urged.

It cocked its head, its antennae quivering.

I couldn't help but smile despite the foolishness of it all. After all, I don't believe the creature could actually understand me. It didn't respond any differently to my statements, but rather its actions were governed by who spoke to it. Barret seems to terrify the little Shadow – it immediately ran away as soon as he turned towards it with any hint of disgruntled bitterness on his face. But I didn't frighten it at all – I tried my best not to.

The little Heartless had been the one to bring the nearly empty vial of Potion that barely saved Leon's life. It had summoned enough courage to approach us despite the natural animosity that exists between the creatures who inhabit the worlds of light and the Heartless, its concern for Leon's life overriding its obvious fear. The impossibly brave behavior of the Shadow was so incredible to behold that it had us stunned. No one knew rightly what to think of it.

Yuffie was ecstatic that it was here, that it was able to provide a quick save to her dear friend. Tifa was a little skeptical, miffed by our continuing lack of ability to communicate with it. Barret was keeping a careful eye on the creature, his suspicions about the Heartless' intentions firmly in place. Red XIII didn't seem to have an opinion of it at all – rather he was pouting over the fact that a Heartless, a Shadow Heartless no less, was there to save Leon's life while he was staring at books in the library. Cid was taking to smiling at the little Shadow as it shuffled about Hollow Bastion, keeping a careful eye on it yet letting it roam as it saw fit. Cloud was too consumed by Leon's failure to recover to voice anything about our little visitor.

I was grateful that the creature had appeared and stemmed its terror to assist us. I don't think any one of us don't feel the same. However, I believe I'm the only person who doesn't have any ill will towards the Shadow. I believe that, despite as impossible as it seems, the Heartless that roams Hollow Bastion with us still has possession of its heart. That somehow despite its current predicament, it has emotions, it has awareness, it has an appreciation for light and for us.

I just wonder who it might have been before it was consumed by darkness.

It approached me, hesitant at first then with more confidence. It looked at my outstretched hand, its own claws twitching.

"Good morning," I quietly said to it, keeping my hand outstretched.

I stared in shock as it looked at me, carefully sliding its inky hand into my own. Its eyes….

Its eyes, while dominantly yellow as were the eyes of all Heartless, were streaked this morning by a faint tinge of aquamarine.

My smile deepened as I walked towards the library, the little Shadow's hand firmly in mine. Reaching the large double doors, I finally released it and reached for the obstacle, pushing it open easily.

The Shadow slinked into the room on its own, its frame bobbing this way and that. I couldn't help but giggle at the movement – for as dangerous as the creatures were, they certainly were odd to watch.

"So, what did you come in here for? Or were you just following me?" I asked even as I slipped amongst the large bookshelves towards the small downstairs seating area that was bathed in the morning's light.

Of course I never expected an answer. However, being able to speak at something – anything – without the subject of Sephiroth, of Leon, of the Planet brought up was comforting.

The creature slipped from shadow to shadow, staring at the bookshelves. Apparently it was looking for something.

I shrugged, leaving the Heartless to its own devices. Instead I fetched a novel from the nearest bookshelf and started reading.

Early morning romance novels put me into a good mood.

Just as I was reading about the young heroine finally meeting the protagonist of the story in the depths of a deep, dark dungeon, a heavy volume smacked solidly onto the floor and startled me cleanly out of my relaxed state. I was up on my feet in a moment, poking my head curiously around the corners of barricading bookshelves, trying to find the location of the abrupt disruption.

The little Heartless looked up at me as I found it, tugging a book along after it. I looked from it to a blank spot in the highest shelf of the bookshelf it was trudging away from. Apparently it had found what it was looking for.

"Now what do you have there?" I asked as I picked up the heavy volume for the small Shadow. Looking it over, I arched a brow.

It was a volume of a series I'd never laid eyes on before. Menzeth. A hefty brown-covered book with light silver trim upon its corners, dusty in the sunlight. I arched a brow as I carried it over to my seat, putting my romance novel to the side before retaking my chair.

I allowed myself to grin as the Heartless picked up my novel and stared at its pages, its head cocked curiously to the side. As it apparently entertained itself, I opened the book it had removed from its storage site.

My eyes sprang wide.

The first words I'd laid my gaze upon were describing the effects of darkness on the human body – that only through the sacrifice of body was a person to fully attain the power of absolute darkness, that without such sacrifice would mastery never be attained and instead absorption and reformation would occur. I stared at the little Heartless.

It looked at me, its oddly mixed eyes boring into mine. Hopping from its seat, it approached and climbed onto the armrest of my own chair. It pointed firmly at the page.

I followed its finger, reading aloud. "Darkness, the birthplace of all hearts, must exist in harmony with light. Imbalance of one or the other tends towards destruction and absorption of the afflicted heart." Glancing at the creature, I softly mouthed, "Is that what happened to you? Were you too bent towards the ways of darkness? Did you lose yourself?"

It just looked at me before turning the page.

I read again. "'Double doors open to the Kingdom of Hearts, the birthplace of all Hearts and of all Life, flooded with the power of absolution – absolute darkness, absolute light. So shall that absolute power be available to those that would open the doors. So shall that absolute power destroy those who would open the doors. So powerful is the absolution of the Heart that only the Heartless can long withstand emersion into the dread Kingdom. So powerful is the absolution of the Heartless that only the most powerful of Hearts can long withstand emersion into the Birthplace of Light. Never to be controlled, never to be contained, the center of creation and destruction is ultimate power for any who would dream of harnessing it.' Threat and salvation in one, its power can be seen through the impossible events of the universe – the impressive Life Stream, keyed directly from the light of Kingdom Hearts which absorbs life and returns it to the planets it serves in the form of radiant energy, is a prominent example. Equally as impressive are the flowing rivers of darkness that jut from the deepest abysses of Kingdom Hearts, delivering the destroyers known throughout the universe as the Heartless."

I let the book slip off of my lap.

The truth behind Kingdom Hearts….

Or was it?

After all, each of these huge volumes was just an interpretation, a study into the deepest secrets of the universe.

Letting a shaky breath escape my lungs, I leaned over to fetch the tome I'd dropped. Perhaps I would leave it for Red XIII to look over and garner an opinion of.

The Heartless' eyes were focused on me. I could feel the weight of its stare on me.

I shivered as it laid its clawed hand upon my back, its sharpened fingers pressing tenderly over my heart.

"Is that what you were trying to show me? That in some small fashion… we are the same…?"

It hopped from its perch and shuffled off.

I shook my head even as I lifted the book and clutched it to my chest.

"Aerith!"

I blinked, looking around wildly, more than a little startled.

Yuffie smiled brightly and waved to me, stepping around a bookshelf. "I saw that little Shadow come scampering out of here. What'cha doin'?"

Smiling, I hugged the heavy book a little more tightly. "It was helping me find some more books for Red to look at."

"But I thought Red gave up on that task," Yuffie pondered, biting lightly on a fingertip.

"For now," I confessed with a little shrug. "But you know Red. Once he gets over himself, he'll be hitting the books again."

"If he gets over himself, you mean. He's beating himself up like crazy over Leon."

I nodded slowly, my smile sliding away as I made my way up the stairs with Yuffie on my heels to lay the book amongst the heavy collection already piled there. "Everyone is. I think it's because he's always been perceived as being untouchable."

"Yeah. Remember that little escapade a month and a half ago? When we went to go look for survivors from that fading world?"

I couldn't help but laugh lightly at the memories that swarmed over me. It had been rather comical watching Barret and Cloud arguing over a plan only to have Leon completely shoot it down and give one of his own that no one could rightly argue against.

Tifa had snidely interjected that if they'd had Leon with them when they'd faced Sephiroth on the Planet, maybe things would have ended more quickly, more efficiently and with half of the losses incurred.

When Barret had snarked out that he was the leader of AVALANCHE, a position he was planning to utilize to garner some respect out of the stoic gunblade slinger, Leon had snorted and asked how many people were in his little rebel unit. Then he'd kindly informed our gun-armed friend exactly what a Garden was, what SeeD was, and how he was its Commander.

I'd never seen Barret bite his tongue before. Yuffie and I have been laughing at those memories to this day.

"I remember," I finally replied. "He really did make his point. And show off. I still couldn't believe that Lionhart managed to take down that Ice Titan in one hit – even Omnislash needed two!"

"Yeah," Yuffie agreed, her smirk in place before she let it fade a touch. "That's exactly why everyone's so torn about this. First off, it was Sephiroth – he's supposed to be long gone, you know? Secondly, it's Leon that fell. It just seems so… impossible. And third thing, he hasn't woken up yet."

I frowned. My eyes were starting to tear up again; I hastily blinked back my tears before looking grimly at Yuffie. "That's because it's up to him."

"Up to him?" she echoed questioningly.

"Yes," I confirmed with a small nod. "The darkness carried by Masamune is burying him. It's up to him to break through. He's got to make a choice – to live for those of us who live in light, or to allow himself to completely collapse and join those people he lost to darkness before he ever met us."

She paled slightly, her smile fading completely. "You mean his Rinny and his friends."

"Rinoa," I corrected softly.

He rarely spoke of them, but when he did – usually once he was so completely inebriated that he didn't realize what he was saying – it was with such animation and emotion that I found myself remembering every story he told.

I was typically the only one he would reminisce with. I was fairly certain that I was the only one amongst us who knew the entire sad story.

Yuffie's sniffing took my attention away from my own internal thoughts as she wiped her tears from her cheeks. "He's never gonna wake up, is he?"

Taking her into my arms, I laid my head on her shoulder, closing my eyes lest my own tears fall. Running a hand along her back, I sighed and pursed my lips. "He will if he finds something worth living for. Have some faith, Yuffie. He won't forget about us that easily."

She tightly squeezed me back. "I hope so," she softly confessed.

A few precious moments later, we heard Cid cursing up a storm, Barret shouting at a 'damned little beast' and Cloud's voice crying out for something to 'get the hell away.'

Yuffie and I stared at each other before we ran for the lodging wing of Hollow Bastion. It looked like once again the stagnant flow of time in our home was being disrupted by something.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: Ack. Tying FF7 to KH is harder than it looks, especially with Splato the Wonder Yutz (Aerith) returning from the dead. Hope this was reasonable - all the FF7 fanboys at work were pleased with it. I'm more of a FF8 whore myself. (shrugs) Squally is my cup of tea, eyeliner and all. To clear up any confusion at all, yes, Sephiroth's still out there, and yes, that was a clone that was 'summoned'/created by darkness. 

And for those of you crying "Cloud would kick Squall's butt any damned day" about that Omnislash/Lionhart reference... sorry. You're wrong. Cloud's Omnislash does a maximum of 149,985 damage (that's 15 hits at 9,999, folks). Squall's Lionhart kicks its pansy ass. Not only does Lionhart do 17 hits at 9,999, it can also be combined with a full 8-hit Renzokuken. Also at 9,999 for every hit. So do the math - 25 consecutive hits at 9,999 each does 249,975 damage. Yep. 99,990 more than Cloud. As said. Squash. Omnislash is teh pussy, dude. (runs away from oncoming flames from FF7 fanboys/girls)

Review replies:

bladegryphon: Well, seeing as how, despite everything, the Heartless is actually one of the major – if not _the_ main – protagonist(s) in the story, it had to get some screen time, neh? I will agree that it's ending up cute. Can't be helped. :) And I just couldn't have Leon go kersplat quite _that_ easily, right? Glad you liked, and glad you reviewed! Thanks!

DarkStarPhoenix: Nope, haven't read any of the Star Wars novels. I'm more of an original Trekkie, truth be told. (flushes, hides) Yeah, I heart James T. Kirk. You can shoot me. (laughs) Well, was thinking originally to have Pete look out for the ol' Doc, but then my brain said, "You know, most've the time Sora's about as perceptive as a sponge." So I shrugged that off. Probably a mistake on my part, but the story'll go on with the consequences. Besides, couldn't change the movie that much, neh? I personally think Sora'd tell Elliott, but he hasn't seen the dragon since the day before, so no opportunity yet. Neh heh heh. Evil plotting mind figures out excuse! Yes, folks, that's why she's a nuclear reactor operator. Her brain can weasel her way out of anything! (victory sign) And I know what you're screaming about dissecting existing work being a pain. That's why a lot of my stuff went on nearly permanent hiatus. Haven't read any of the 'YouCantBeSerious' stuff yet – I'm not a PotHead. Might do the Star Wars stuff, though. :) And I do so wish that someday I'll get to see those mountains – it just requires me getting on a different ship. (spats at her ship with a hearty 'pattoie') Thanks again for the review and your continued support, BTW!

Dark Mog: YES! I've broken a habit! (happy dance, then settles down) Eh heh. Yeah, random outburst. Thanks for the continued support! Thanks for the reviews! (bows) And now you know my reason for using a Shadow when I had such a vast array of Heartless to choose from. The little guys are cute in their strange bobble-headed cockroach ways. Oh, hate to say this, but don't expect the rate up updating to keep up. (whimper) The only reason it's so fast right now is that this is all the work I wrote on the LAN while out to sea for 6 months, now being manually typed into my home computer and edited like mad and posted for the world. So this is 6 months worth of boredom between playing KH1, KH:CoM and any game that meandered its way down into my work center (and eating, and sleeping, and stuff). Mostly this is the product of boring watches where nothing was happening (yay Navy). So I'm running out of old material and have to start up with some new chapters. Ack. But I'm going to try to maintain at least a once per week update. If that's possible, that is – I've got 7 other stories right now that need my attention. (sweatdrop) But that whining aside, I'll try my damnedest! (fist pump a la Zell) Glad you're enjoying the story still!

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Complains? Compliments? (throws over Ansem plushie) Yank the string. You know you want to. 


	14. Absorption

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that. This chapter will explain some stuff. Or confuse you further. But I don't know(or particularly care), because I'm looking at my sleeping gerbil and reflecting on how damned cute she is. I'm rambling now. So on with the story!

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 14  
The Heartless – Absorption

The place is big.

Very, very big. I got very lost over the time I spent here.

However, there were some things about it that drew little aspects of my memory back to me, little glimpses that I could stare at before they withered away into the black span of oblivion once again.

For the first time in a long time I felt myself connecting with what I had lost. I felt myself… finding myself in those strange, alien memories.

Memories of a lady with a strange, tall hat in black robes.

Memories of bitter drinks and restless nights.

Memories of bad dreams and a girl that wouldn't wake up.

Memories of a weapon that was once mine, then was used against me.

Memories of looking at the books, puzzling over what was in some of them.

Memories of looking at pages and laughing manically at their contents, at how very wrong it all was or how accurate it could be in the most loose of interpretations, of throwing books in disarray as they mocked me with their hidden knowledge.

Memories of staring over inverted falls, pondering how it was the water could do that.

Memories of conversing with other people in lab coats, discussing charts, research papers, tome contents and discoveries.

Memories of looking down at myself with hatred and longing to destroy the incarnation that was so much smaller than myself.

Memories of… a duck. A duck with a staff.

Memories of a strange bipedal dog with an odd blue shield.

Memories of someone in red with that strange gray weapon – or was it golden?

Memories of being hurt terribly by all those creatures, by all those weapons.

Some of these memories I don't think are mine. But for some reason they still whirl in my head when I look at things here.

The woman in pink who lead me here, the only one who didn't hold any hostility towards me, was always in the library. That's why I went there, too. She was nice. She was pretty. She wouldn't scare me or try to smash me with things. The angry dark-skinned one with the gun for a hand would glare at me so blackly that I swore he was going to turn me into a stain on the floor. She was my protection.

It was during one of her morning trips that I remembered the book. I remembered being enthralled with what it said at one time, then at another time and from a completely different perspective being disgusted by hat it said. I don't understand how I can have two different memories of the same thing, but there's much about myself I don't know anymore.

When she'd opened the book I'd finally found after a good time of searching, I looked at the page.

I remembered the picture. The bit that snatched my fading memory was next to the round thing.

Then the bit on the next page, next to the symbol that is the universal representation of my kind, the Heartless' empty heart that is superimposed on the more powerful of my brethren. More interesting and simultaneously hateful text.

The book slid off her lap. As she stooped to fetch it, I lightly placed my claws upon her back.

I… think I was trying to sooth her. I don't understand why.

I… could feel her.

I could feel how upset she was over what she'd read.

And somewhere in my psyche, I felt guilty for making her sad.

Lightly pressing my claws over her heart, I felt that muscle's steady beat, heady and strong. That beat that I lack, that beat that we all lust to conquer and destroy.

I so wanted to preserve that.

I was different.

She was helping me maintain that difference. Everyone here helped bolster that difference.

However, with recent events, they were sad. They were dejected. Their lights were fading.

I was determined not to see those lights fade.

Shuffling into the room where the fallen one was kept, I leapt up onto the bed and studied him with my wide eyes.

I could immediately see the problem. Couldn't they?

With as much darkness as was surrounding his heart, there'd be no way for him to fight his way through.

He'd need help.

Steeling my resolve, I looked cautiously at the man's slowly moving chest. I wasn't certain if what I was doing was right….

But I was certain that, if left to his own devices, the man on the bed would fail.

I plunged my claws into his chest, wrapping my inky fist solidly around his frail heart.

The spiky-haired blonde shouted something very loudly, his voice a desperate cry. The old man burst into the room, his burning cigarette dangling from his lips then falling to the ground as he saw me before he started saying something too. This brought the dark-skinned man who screamed at me and threateningly flailed.

I wouldn't stop, though. Not right now. They needed him back. He needed help.

Normally when a Heartless does this, we absorb the heart, the very light from the person we strike. We consciously draw that light into ourselves, crushing it with our own auras and delivering those decimated remains to our center, our Kingdom.

I wasn't doing that, though. Instead, I focused on letting his heart absorb me.

I let myself become one with his darkness.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies: 

polynesia: Aw, do you want me to slow down? It's going to inevitably happen in 3 more chapters anyway. So there. (grin) So, the pinkness of Aerith was a detrimental image for you? So sorry to hear that. I just didn't like her because she's a freaking Mary Sue. (laughs) Actually, because she's as bubble-headed as they come. Hence why I renamed her Airhead. But I'm a bad person, according to everyone in my work center – just because I renamed Squally and wanted so desperately to name Cloud 'Bitch' or 'Chicken Wuss'. It'd be classic. (cackle) And as for Tita… Tifa… gaw, I hear you! The cutscenes made my eyes bleed. Owwy. The polygons freaking HURT, dude. No need to hush, by the way – you got me laughing out loud stupidly at my monitor at 2AM on Easter Sunday at the thought of being distracted by Tifa's boobs and having Cloud stand around like a moron getting walloped repeatedly across his face. Expect to see more li'l Heartless dude – I like him. He's cute. (nods) And as for where Sora's going to next… well, he'll have to fix Passamaquoddy before he can even dream of going elsewhere! Rein in those horses there:D Thanks much for the review! (Kamui plushie is squeaking in relief that his cute li'l self was spared by his sheer adorableness, and that his stitching got studied instead. Maybe Ansem plushie will have a chance of appearing once some plans are drawn out. Neh heh heh. Wends will have to try to sew once more. The horrors!)

DarkStarPhoenix: Thanks for the hint – guess I'll be staying the heck away from the Star Wars novels. (laughs) The original Star Trek… oh, that's so hard to explain! Space adventures with a huge amount of cheese thrown in. (chuckle) The acting was terrible, the red shirts always died and Kirk got every woman in the galaxy. (laughs) But it was still oddly addicting. (smirk) Once I run out of material to edit, it should take me about a week (maybe less if I can actually get some severe motivation) to update. I do have other stories that need attention too, unfortunately, but this one will be getting a lot more visitation due to the number of reviews it's getting. Oh, yeah, I do operate a nuclear reactor. It's what I do in the Navy. Make power for the rest of the ship by running my reactor. Involves a lot of knowledge, a lot of patience, and a lot of confidence in the knowledge I've got (we're known as arrogant pricks for a reason)… and a whole lot of ability to remain awake in the middle of the night when nothing's going on because you have to be conscious in case something happens and you have to take action immediately to save the core. Not that anything ever _does _happen. Which is where 'Behind Closed Doors' was born – boredom on watch. (laughs) I'll definitely have to visit your Jenolan Caves if I make it down to Australia! I love spelunking trips. I've been through, like, almost every major tourist system on the west coast – starting up on the east coast next year when I'm at a shore-based command and not dealing with the madness of an unpredictable sea rotation. And before I forget, thanks for reviewing! Guess there were no problems with this chapter, neh? (laughs)

Dark Mog: Well, while some people might have hearts and apologize for making you worried about Leon, I'm giggling in glee as my goal's been accomplished – it's difficult sometimes to make character drama when the outcome's a foregone conclusion, you know? Thanks for that statement, actually! On the thought of other FF7 characters… just wait. (evil cackle) It's going to get even more fun. But those chapters aren't written yet, though they're completely planned – let's just say that there's a reason Cloud gets into his Advent Children clothing. A very good, very cranky, very pissed red-eyed reason. (smirk) Crap. Think I just gave it away. Oh well. Cool FF7 party, by the way. Mine was usually Cloud, Red and Tifa, though she got changed out for Barret on a fairly regular basis. I'm afraid I didn't do enough with Deathbringer to make Vinny's final break that great. (whimper) But Max Beam kicks teh booty. (grin) TOS fan? Cool! Sulu was my fave. I can remember gushing about him when I was a wee little girl sitting with my Daddy watching television – I wanted to meet him soooo badly! Kinda sad, neh? And I thought Chekov was damned cute, too. Spock was 4 on the list – Bones came right before him because I always laughed my ass off every time he said something. "Damn it Jim, I'm a Doctor, not a (blank)!" or "It's worse than that. He's dead, Jim." (dies laughing) But in other news, we're going out to sea on Friday, destined to be out until May – looks like more fanfic writing time will be visiting me. (kicks ground) Damned boring watches. Yay Navy. (snark) Hope you enjoyed more Heartless cuteness! And thanks for the continued reviews! (glomp of glee)

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Complaints? Compliments? (waves Ansem plushie around over the 'Submit Review' feature) Submit to the plushie! You know you wanna. Heh heh. 


	15. Appearance

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 15  
The Keyblade Master – Appearance

Well, Donald and I had determined that it wasn't the fault of the radar that I wasn't able to find anything in Passamaquoddy when I'd run down to the town and looked about like mad in the middle of the night. Just so happens that the Heartless that it detected were really slick and managed to avoid me.

Having put up with a few hours of Donald poking fun at me and Goofy questioning me on exactly what I'd seen and heard in the town's rather quiet center, I left in a huff and marched my way into town once again. Scuffing my shoes along the sidewalk as I traipsed past a white picket fence, I glared at the ground.

The duck made it sound like it was all my fault for missing them. Hmph. It's hard to see black Heartless in the middle of the night sometimes! He didn't take too kindly to me reminding him how he got himself pounded by Darkballs in Traverse Town because, ahem, he couldn't see them before they were right on top of us.

Stuffing my hand into my pocket, I calmly grabbed a handful of keychains even as I rounded the corner and came upon the town's busy center. Ducking into a small, secluded area by the local bar and sitting down behind the crates, I looked through what I'd grabbed.

After all, I didn't know what kind of Heartless were actually here in Passamaquoddy. Spellbinder would easily do for Soldiers and Shadows, but if I ran into anything like a Wyvern or a Defender or, God help me, Invisibles I'd be in pretty serious trouble. It was time to swap out the keychains again, just to ensure I was prepared for whatever was around the next proverbial corner.

I sighed as I stared at the conglomeration of metal in my hand. I missed all the people I'd met while gathering them.

The Pumpkin Head, the keychain I'd gained in Halloween Town, brought back fond memories of Jack, the skeleton who'd valiantly fought alongside of us once he'd discovered he couldn't make the Heartless dance with him for his festival. The Wishing Star reminded me of the kindly Ghepetto and Pinocchio and my adventures in Monstro, where I'd finally gotten to see Riku again… and the horrible results of that encounter. I frowned as I stuffed that keychain back into my pocket.

Ultima Weapon rested in my hand. Carefully lifting that, I nodded and set it on the ground beside me. After all, when in doubt, go with the strongest thing you've got.

I smiled as I looked over Metal Chocobo and Lionheart. I did so miss those two.

At first I'd thought it downright silly that the tall blonde warrior who'd given us such a pounding in the Coliseum only to be brought down by Cerberus to have such a ridiculous looking item in his possession. However that ridiculous bird, when clasped to my keyblade, brought forth so much power I was astonished. It was this keyblade I'd used to defeat Riku the first time I'd fought him after his assimilation by Ansem. It'd used the keyblade with its bright chain to block the dark keyblade in my rival's hand from plunging into Kairi's heart and completing Hollow Bastion's door to Kingdom Hearts. So I guess it was a good reminder of Cloud – after all, Aerith had shown us pictures of chocobos in books in the library and explained how Cloud was so enthralled with the massive birds that he would breed them and raise them with glee. Strangely comical in the right atmosphere, but obscenely strong, producing a horribly long sword that was much faster than anyone would expect.

Lionheart was a perfect reminder of Leon. The roaring lion's head was stately – heck, even majestic – and so fierce looking. The silver blade itself was graceful, hardly appearing to be a usable weapon and instead be something one would appreciate in an art collection under glistening lights until it was swung. Only then did it reveal its enormous power, channeling every ounce of the wielder's strength through its impressive length, boosting the power of every spell that would make its way to its holder's mind. It was strong, it was supportive, yet it was artistically crafted and beautiful to behold. And considering how Leon treated me in the streets of Traverse Town – pounding me to a pulp only to rescue me – then in the Coliseum where he'd shown just a touch of his potential to test our strength and decide whether or not we were up to his standards, the keychain was perfect. Plus the fact that he wore the same emblem around his neck, had a ring crafted in the same image, had it dangling from the hilt of his gunblade and had it inked in red on his jacket's left sleeve rather blatantly tied him and it together.

I let a reserved sigh escape me as I pocketed those two as well. As much as I enjoyed using those keychains to remind me of the people who'd given them to me, I was in unknown territory here in Passamaquoddy and would resort to the strongest thing in my arsenal. I looked forlornly at my keyblade as I unclasped Spellbinder and replaced it with Ultima Weapon, watching as the blade elongated and was comprised of thin, sweeping tendrils of golden metal once more. Sliding Spellbinder into my pocket, I nodded. Now I was ready for anything.

Getting to my feet, I sent the keyblade back into the recesses of my heart. I didn't need to walk around town with it in hand, after all.

As I once again approached the docks, I sighed and stuffed my hands into my pockets while my eyes drifted shut. My lips turning with a slight frown, my merriment over being in this peaceful world fading slightly, I groused internally as I reflected on the journey that'd brought me this far.

Justas I began my reminiscing, I was rudely interrupted by the gasps and shouts of a crowd gathered at the piers.

What the heck?

Bursting into a light jog, I pushed my way through the gathering to see what was going on. My eyes sprang wide as I saw what was occurring.

What had to be the ugliest woman I'd ever laid eyes on in my life was smiling, her crooked brown teeth seeming to absorb any light that struck them rather than reflect it and shine. "Well, if it ain't our own little Petey!" she professed in a loud voice as she leaned on the tall posts that lined the piers.

Staring in the direction she was facing, I gulped. Pete, Nora and Lampie were indeed there, all three of them bundled in a little boat with a full lobster trap sitting on a gnarled wooden bench behind them.

Ugly hillbillies that lay claim to Pete? It had to be the Gogans! My suspicions were confirmed as Pete whimpered their family name, his voice barely drifting to the crowd on the pier.

The horrendous woman spoke again. "Well, you look so nice and clean! And those new clothes. I guess the good manners I taught you done paid off."

The man at her side in a floppy hat leered at the small boat, his expression barely caught by my staring eyes. "Who's the little lady you're with, Pete?" His inquiry was followed by lusty sighs from the two younger filthy men that flanked him, calling out, "Yeah, introduce us."

No freaking way!

I started to push my way violently through the crowd, intent on reaching these horrible people.

If nothing else, I could certainly dunk them in the harbor!

These Gogans really were nightmarish trouble, just as Pete proclaimed them to be! I could verily feel the darkness radiating from them.

Nora's voice barely caught my ears as she hissed, "I'm Nora. And Pete's staying with us."

Oh crap. This was going to turn violent if I didn't do something….

Much to my dismay, even as I broke free of the small and curious crowd and charged for the filthy people who were targeting the trio in the small boat, the female leader of the quartet shouted, "Well, seems like someone's trying to break up our happy family. C'mon, Dad!" and upon her direction they hopped into a boat and started rowing out.

I barely managed to slide to a halt, my large yellow sneakers squeaking on the wooden dock as they brought my motion to an end right before I hit the water myself. Flailing with my arms for a few minutes, a panicked 'woah!' coming to my lips, I barely maintained my position. Wobbling backward instead of forward, I landed on my butt with a thud rather than splashing on my face in the water.

Hopping seconds later to my feet, I dashed towards the nearest boat that was still tethered to the dock. Unraveling the loose knot over the cleat that held the small rowboat in place against the current, I jumped into the vessel and grabbed an oar. "I'll return it shortly!" I promised the irate fisherman who'd shouted that I was stealing his boat and came dashing for me. "I'm just going to help them!" I quickly justified even as I threw my oar to the water and started paddling for all I was worth.

As I stroked against the friction of the water with all my might, I heard the Gogans' mother snarling at the top of her lungs, "Lady, that boy's ours! We've got a bill of sale right here that says he belongs to us!"

The debate was heated and filled with hatred, the rowing between the Gogans and Lampie fast and furious. It took my all to remain within earshot of what they were saying, much less make any progress!

However, seconds later, my help was no longer required.

The boat the Gogans occupied suddenly burst to pieces, sending the filthy scum flying through the air, flailing and screaming. The Gogans' mother hit the water, bill of sale still held aloft even as she began to sputter and sink.

Grimacing even as Pete happily acknowledged Elliott's invisible presence, I finished my task of rowing to them. Panting in exhaustion, I threw my oar into my boat. "You guys alright?" I gasped.

"Sora! What're you doing, boy?" Lampie questioned, his eyes wide.

Sitting in my boat, my hands on my knees and my head ducked almost between my legs, I slowed my breathing and drew a lungful of air. "I was trying to get out here to help," I confessed, a slight smile marking my lips.

"Thanks, but Elliott had it under control," Pete merrily chirped eve as the Gogans hauled themselves out of the harbor and ran off leaving a trail of water marking their escape.

"I see that," I wearily noted, my tired little smile becoming a full-blown grin.

"Well, you can help us row back in," Lampie offered even as he exhaled exhaustedly. "My arms are pooped!"

"Sure. Toss me a line," I offered.

It took more than I'd expected to haul both boats in. I was so dead tired by the time I'd tethered the boat I requisitioned to the pier that I staggered onto the dock and fell flat on my face, whimpering and gasping for breath.

"Thanks, boy!" Lampie chirped as he hauled me back onto my feet and patted my back.

"Sure, no problem," I simpered.

"Are you alright, Sora?" Nora quietly asked, laying her hand on my rather shaky shoulder. "If you like, you can come with us. The least we can do to thank you for your kindness is treat you to dinner."

So very, very tempting! However, I did have a job to do. And with the coming of night, I would have to be here rather than enjoying a hot, home-cooked meal in the lighthouse. "Thank you, but it's alright. I've got things I've got to do in town tonight, most unfortunately."

"Gee, that's too bad," Pete sighed. "Maybe another time?"

I grinned brightly. "I'll hold you to that!"

We shook hands on it, our grins impossibly bright, before Nora laid her hand on Pete's shoulder and directed him away. They were returning to the lighthouse for the evening, taking their lobster with them for their meal.

Huffing, I kicked at the dock as I walked towards solid land once more.

Darned Heartless. They always managed to jip me out of a good deal. So many free meals missed!

The day slowly passed without event, my stay near the docks uninterrupted as I sat outside of a small restaurant and calmly chewed on a sandwich while watching the sun travel across the pristine blue sky. I was more than grateful that I'd pocketed all the change I'd found laying around the streets – I'd found that Passamaquoddy has no clue about munny, and my habit of stuffing shiny things in my pockets guaranteed that I could buy a cheap sandwich and a drink.

It was just as I was stuffing the last of my cheese sandwich in my mouth that I spotted a gray cloak whisking towards the docks.

I instantly recognized the person as Doctor Terminus. My eyes widened as I stared at the man who was plotting against Pete's guardian.

"Ahoy!" his voice shouted, carried by the soft ocean breeze. "Ahoy, here! How would you like to bring the fish back?"

I rose out of my chair, jogging to a set of crates that rested near to where he was. I ducked behind them for cover and peered through the small spaces between those carelessly stacked boxes to watch him.

He was addressing the town's disheartened fishermen, of course, and his choice of words had instantly captured their attention.

"How do we go 'bout doin' that?" one of the fishermen I'd observed griping furiously about Pete's dragon driving away the fish supply the other day questioned, his brows arched without confidence and his voice filled with plentiful suspicion.

"Find the dragon. Capture him. Get rid of him. Goodbye dragon, hello fish. What do you think? Meet here. Boathouse. Eight o'clock. Be here."

As he darted off to start orchestrating the rest of his plan, the fishermen mumbled amongst themselves.

Oh no!

Gritting my teeth, I bolted out of my hiding place even as the fishermen began to meander away from the docks, their work for the day done. Stopping my panicked run before I bolted after them, I scowled as I was soon left completely alone on the deserted dock.

They were going to help him.

Crap!

My eyes caught movement to my left.

Turning sharply on my heel, I stared, my breath coming to an instant halt.

Pirate Heartless!

I instinctively reached into the depths of my heart, calling forth my desperation and my light. That light began to slide form my center along my arm, pooling in my fingers and extending away from them, twisting into swirling sparkles of color to form the Ultima Weapon keyblade. I took a step towards the scraggly-clothed creature even as it set is blank yellow stare on me and brandished its sword, showing no fear as is typical of all Heartless.

We charged one another, swords lifted. As I brought mine down in a furious sweep with a grunt, it turned its blade to block. The clang of our weapons striking reverberated from the front of the boathouse and echoed across the rippling waves.

It pushed mightily away from me, hopping back easily and slashing its weapon before itself to regain its grip on the slightly curved sword it fought with. Dashing to the side, it approached me again.

I easily turned on my toes, blocking the strike that came for me. Stepping forward as it reeled back, the force of its own blow combined with my deflection putting it completely off balance, I slung the keyblade forward and slashed from my right to my left. The Heartless was pummeled easily by the blow, staggering backward again. My next step took me within range of an easy jab at its middle, immediately followed by an overhead slash and a hop that pounded the blade into its head. "C'mon!" I grunted as I mashed the keyblade firmly down into the creature's body, feeling its solid shadowy form give way and dissipate as it was removed from existence, inky remains splattering around me.

As the red glow of its stolen heart faded away in a flicker of darkness, I heard movement to my right. I turned towards the waves.

Now I understood completely why the fish were no longer within these waters.

Screwdiver Heartless were quickly climbing onto the pier.

With a roar I charged them.

Underwater, Screwdiver Heartless are formidable foes, sweeping out of nowhere with incredible speed granted to them by the propellers on the backs of their fish-shaped heads, pointed tridents hardly missing their marks as they jut through the ocean's depths. On land they lose all of that speed and grace, staggering slowly about like Shadow Heartless with their clumsily wielded weapons.

I cut through the first two easily before squeaking. My foot had managed to land right in a puddle of water one of them had dragged onto the already slick wooden pier, causing my sneaker to completely lose traction.

With a yelp I splashed noisily in the water.

Sputtering as I burst to the surface, my cinnamon locks drenched and dripping yet still defying gravity, I looked around with panicked eyes.

When I'd faced them in Atlantica, I'd had a distinct advantage that put me on even footing with them. Donald's magic had transformed me into a merman, giving me a dolphin's tail and dorsal fin to be able to swim at a like speed as them. He also gave me the ability to breath underwater, meeting them on their battleground on like terms.

However, without his magic, I was annoyingly slow compared to the Heartless and unable to really enter their domain for long.

They knew this. They were grabbing my waterlogged sneakers and trying to drag me down with them.

Kicking violently, I shouted and jabbed through the water with Ultima Weapon. I failed to shake them off.

My eyes stung viciously as they remained open in the salty water, staring in the slight haze of sunlight slipping through the briny mix at the Heartless that swarmed around me. Swinging viciously with my sword, my movement horribly slow owing to the drag water held on my body and my weapon, I tried desperately to beat them off.

They swam swiftly about, dodging my feeble attacks and coming back at me with their tridents.

I shut my eyes tightly. I couldn't match them in their environment. I was a goner!

Suddenly I was dangling in the air, gulping desperately for breath, water pouring off my body and back into the bay. Screwdiver Heartless were flying out of the harbor, landing with loud squishy thuds on the boardwalk.

I was set gently on my feet. Dazed and confused, I staggered a couple of steps, shook my head violently to clear my skull of the ringing that had visited it and to drain the water from my ears, and looked about.

I heard the jabbering coming from my left, followed by a click and a roar.

Elliott had saved me!

Grinning, I grabbed my keyblade and charged the Heartless he was throwing casually onto the land, the dragon having recognized the source of my dilemma and possibly having figured out that they were also the source of the town's dwindling fish supply problem.

The Heartless fell swiftly, cut down in record time. Soon I was panting quietly, hands on my knees, keyblade returned to the depths of my being to free my hands. Slowly lifting my head, I looked around for any sign of the dragon.

Apparently he had more important things to do.

Oh well. I needed to go back to the gummi ship and report what I'd found to Donald and Goofy. They'd find it to be interesting news.

As I trudged towards the lighthouse, I looked back towards the boathouse even as night fell. I swallowed a lump in my throat as I spotted multitudes of fishermen trudging the boardwalk, carrying huge nets and long ropes.

The trap for Elliott was being constructed.

Informing Donald and Goofy about the Heartless suddenly took second priority. First off, I had to warn the dragon and Pete about what was going on!

I broke into a run, racing as quickly as my tired body could to the beautiful lighthouse on its precipice of rock to speak with the red-haired child. I stared, screeching to a halt, as I finally spotted him – he was shouting "Oh no!" and running along with Doctor Terminus!

"Pete! Wait!" I cried at the top of my lungs, intending to run after him.

A feathery hand gripped my own and stopped me.

"Sora!" Donald's gravely voice shouted. "Come on!"

"But Donald," I started, trying to pull my hand out of his grip, "I have to help them!"

"Then help them by helping us! There's big trouble coming in!"

"Trouble?"

Goofy huffed and puffed as he finally caught up with the swift duck. They must've been running up to me while my focus was set on the gray-cloaked doctor and the orphan boy. Lifting his huge nose, he nodded. "Yep! Heartless, and lots of 'em!"

"Where?" I groaned.

"Comin' in from the ocean, it looks like! They'll be here any minute!"

"And to make matters worse," Donald interjected, "there's a ship out there that they're aiming for!"

I grimaced. Elliott would have to handle Pete and the trap on his own.

I granted them a quick, small prayer for their safety. Hopefully the dragon was powerful enough to overcome the doctor's plot.

"Alright," I conceded. "We have to save them. Donald, Goofy, let's fly."

With that, I summoned Tinkerbell. A quick explanation of the situation was all we needed – she showered us with her golden glittering pixie dust, and with one happy thought (being back home with Riku and Kairi, with everything back to normal), we were off.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies:

polynesia: Sorry that you're going to be disappointed soon with the slowing in the posting. (whimper) But my work schedule and my beaten little brain only allow for so much madness at a time, you know. Heh heh. Tifa got a breast reduction in FF7:AC. They kept that for KH2, it seems. She's, like, only a FF cup instead of 'OMG she should be falling on her face and there's no earthly cup size for that' anymore. And HOW can you call Sephy a lamer (takes a moment to cry bloody tears at the fact that Seifer did indeed say that – he needs Squally to pound some couth back into him)! Well… alright. So I can understand. A little. Because I got a level 48 Sora to pound him in KH1 (I'm actually doing the form building like a mo-pho in 2, so I'm nowhere near the point of fighting Jenova's love child yet – tell you the painful thing, you form-build like mad and anti-form becomes something a girl's WAY too familiar with. I can pound everything in Hollow Bastion with anti-form though, given my level. Wait… is that a bad thing?) then used Sephy as a spank-monkey to level up nice and quick. Yeah, I'm one of those freaks who went against Ansem for the very first time at level 100 with Ultima Weapon in my hand. And Donald and Goofy had Save the Queen/King. Sick. The battle was a freaking yawn fest. And I totally understand video games being a snrk fest if you know mythology. Try being a theology buff who really, REALLY likes studying all the different aspects of modern monotheism (Catholicism, Christianity, Judaism, Muslim, Gnosticism, Kabala, and so on) then play Xenosaga. It'll make your ears bleed after your brain explodes. Oh, by the way, your random statement about 'Hugs For Heartless' spawned my pathetic drawing skills into gear. Check my profile page. (laughs) And sewing your hair into something…? Eh… Yeesh. (grin) Sounds painful. I'll send pictures if I get him sewn. (cackle) Great. Now I'm thinking of Ansem plushies and cuddly Sephiroth. Thanks! (grunt)

DarkStarPhoenix: Ah, running my reactor isn't dangerous at all. In fact, we have lower incident rates than diesel plants (otherwise known as 0 incidents in the entire history of our operations) and I do like to boast the very real fact that I get less cancer causing ionizing radiation than any of you reading this stuff – my plant's heavily shielded, my job is very safe, and it keeps me from ever seeing the sun, so I don't get irradiated by the giant fusion reactor in the sky. Nope. And I'm pale as all get-out, too. (whimper) I lost my tan completely thanks to my job. Oh, and as for places keeping us out, that's when we just anchor and run liberty boats. (laughs) Can guarantee the subs ignore that. The carriers (what I work on) are a little too obvious, though – can't slip in underwater, and if the lighting's right you can see us for freaking miles. Big damned boat. Thanks for the Happy Easter (it was filled with Diet Coke – thank goodness Lent's over! That was a painful thing to sacrifice) and thanks for the compliment on my Aerith characterization! She's hard for me. Her and Rinoa both make me want to impale my head on a stick, so getting them right's a challenge. I'm glad to hear that I did alright. (prostrates self) BTW, Mary Sues can be OCs too. (smirk) And to answer your question, I get internet access when I'm out to sea, but I don't have the ability to upload anything onto fanfiction . net. See, the common network that has the internet satellite connection doesn't have a word processing program – plus I write all my fanfiction on a secure in-ship LAN and just print it up for retyping later. So that's why I can't update when out to sea. I can answer all emails, though, provided they go to my shipboard email address (hoernewm roosevelt . navy . mil, minus the spaces of course) seeing as how hotmail is a restricted site for us (they try to secure anything that can't be monitored to keep people from giving out confidential information like ship's movement, missions and locations). Bleh. And when I say west coast, I do mean the USA. Sorry for the confusion! (sweatdrop)

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Standard fare – any desire to comments should be directed to my plushie. (gestures to plushie that presents the 'Submit Review' feature with his stubby plush arms a la Vanna White before barking out "SUBMIT!") 


	16. Contemplation

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 16  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Contemplation

I couldn't help but sigh as I held his hand.

His fingers laid limply in mine, completely unmoving, completely dead. The only thing that alluded to the fact that he did still exist in the realm of the living was the slight amount of warmth that came from those digits, and even that was scant at best.

I hardly understood it. Why hadn't he woken up?

Aerith had granted him all of her healing skill, resting for long hours after we'd returned to Hollow Bastion's spacious interior and poured her regained magical strength into his frame. The horrible hole that marred his chest had sealed, leaving nothing but yet another vicious scar on his already thoroughly battle-marred body. His heartbeat was fairly strong, his pulse present and steady, his breathing quiet and rhythmic. His eyes remained closed to the world, his body completely immobile.

I don't know how long he'd been like this. Time had become nothing – its flow was stagnant, its numbers without purpose. From the moment I'd seen Yuffie kneeling by his side, her hands and knees marred with his blood, time had no meaning. All that could make it resume its gradual cadence was his awakening, and that had yet to happen.

I slowly lowered my prickly chin to rest atop his chilled hand, staring with my Mako eyes at those shut eyelids that refused to part.

I know everyone thought I was being ridiculous. I'd been forsaking the warmth of my bed, the comfort of meals, the companionship of my friends to remain at his side, holding his hand, waiting for him to stir. To blink. To speak. To give me any damned sign that this wasn't permanent.

I don't know what I'd do if it was.

If Leon never again opened his eyes….

Grimacing, I let my head drop a bit more, pressing my nose to his wrist.

Every time my eyes betrayed me and closed, when my body failed me and I fell into a fitful slumber by his side with my head pressed against him, I continually relived the battle. I saw again the black angel that delivered the near-fatal blow. I saw again the blood that pooled upon the rocky shoreline where he lay, dripping slowly onto the still waters that permeate the foundation of Hollow Bastion. I saw again the heroic actions of the little Shadow that dwells with us now and the failure of the Heartless' action to revive Leon.

When that Shadow had approached, its golden eyes wide and surprisingly vivid, I remember I'd clutched Leon's body firmly to my own, my eyes hard and glaring angrily. I'd originally thought that it was here to rip his heart away, to pull his soul from his body in his final throes of life. Cid and Yuffie seemed to share my thought, Yuffie huddling close to my side and discretely pulling shuriken from her armguard, Cid brandishing Venus Gospel and pointing the tip of that wicked spear directly at the little black creature. Aerith was the person who stopped him from springing into action and skewering it right then and there – her observant eyes caught sight of the small glass vial it held in its claws.

I remember rejoicing when the droplets of green liquid that came from Yuffie's nearly completely expended Potion had caused the wound I could clearly see through to seal a little, the meaty red muscle that was Leon's heart stitching itself back together and pulsating wetly as it began to beat once more. I almost shed tears when his chest began to slowly rise and fall, his one whole lung desperately drawing breath while its sliced and collapsed twin lay uselessly within his ribcage.

Knowing his grip on life was so extremely tenuous, I had gathered him with delicate care into my arms and made for the rooms within Hollow Bastion as swiftly as I could, leaving his gunblade where it lay atop the rock spire where my battle with Sephiroth had met its termination and the scattered pieces of First Tsurugi strewn about the cavern. I'd sworn to myself that I'd return to fetch both swords later.

Ultimately it was Yuffie who fetched them, walking silently into the room a good deal of time after we'd brought him back and laid him in his bed. She'd leaned his gunblade reverently in the corner, its tip pressed into the carpet and its hilt pointed towards the ceiling as it rested easily against the wall. First Tsurugi was later brought in piece by piece and set on top of the room's dresser.

I'd fully intended to return his gunblade to him. But once I'd helped Aerith strip his decimated jacket and his bloodied shirt from his wounded frame, once my eyes had roved over countless years of battle damage and his most recent injury, I dedicated myself instead to bandaging him and waiting at his side for his eyes to open once more.

My waking always brought me back to grim reality. He had yet to awaken. I was still waiting. It was possible that I would be waiting forever.

I didn't want to believe that would be the case, though. Every time I roused from my nightmares, every time I laid my newly opened eyes on his still face, I found myself believing in him. I believed in his strength of heart. I believed in his stubborn determination.

I believed in the….

Well, at least I hope it was… at the very least friendship that he considered we had between us.

Even so, it was hard to do this day after day. Sit silently, waiting for gunmetal eyes to open, waiting to stare into those stormy depths that harbor so many emotions that would never be allowed to grace that stone-cold face now softened and aged by a days' old moustache and beard, far beyond the stubble he wore late in the evenings. It was almost as if I was torturing myself, punishing myself for arriving too late to save him.

Maybe I was.

After all, despite my strength, despite everything I've done for so many other people, I couldn't rescue him.

It had to be a little Shadow Heartless to save his life. It had to be Aerith that patched him back together. I could do nothing.

All I could do was wait.

I sniffed helplessly as droplets of water once again hit his hand.

Damn it all, I was ending up as some sort of wishy-washy twit. I don't ever recall crying this much before.

I cried, certainly, when Tifa had fallen off the mountain and been comatose when we were children. I'd cried when I'd been delivered the blame for her accident, when my inadequate attempt to save her failed. I'd cried alone when I was told that I would never qualify for SOLDIER and was summarily removed from the qualifying process. I couldn't help but shed tears when my dreams of being an adequate protector as I'd promised I'd be to Tifa were dashed to the winds like dried leaves from a tree. I'd screamed my woes to the world when I'd awakened from the vicious attack delivered upon me by the SOLDIER general and seen my hometown burning, my house, my mother, those people I'd grown up around laying in pools of their own blood and being consumed by hungry flames. I'd cried below the heavens when I'd awakened to find Zack dead, my only reminders of him being the Buster Sword I carried so reverently until I turned its tip to pierce the earth and mark the place where he fell, and the dedicated memories in my mind. I'd sulked in solitude, my tears running down my cheeks, when I discovered that I was nothing but a failed product of Hojo's mad experiments, a clone of the ultimate SOLDIER that wasn't even warranted a number to identify me. I'd sobbed before my companions that I traveled with when I'd been forced by one of Sephiroth's clones to lower Aerith's murdered body into the Life Stream, dedicating her to the Planet we were all trying so desperately to save. I'd cried when my true memories were brought to the surface of my mind by my inadvertent plunge into the Life Stream, forcing me to deal with my adoption of Zack's spirit and realize that I was still the abused, insignificant, mild boy I'd always been. I'd shet tears of shame when I'd been faced with Aerith again here in Hollow Bastion a full nine years after its destruction at the hands of the Heartless. But other than that….

All of my tears have been about Leon.

Snarling quietly at myself, I hastily lifted my free hand and pushed the wet droplets from my face, smearing the trails they left across my scruffy, stubble-marred cheeks. I sniffed loudly in determination to keep my nose from running uncontrollably.

Why was I falling apart like this?

I didn't bother turning when I heard the door to Leon's room open and shut. I knew by the light fall of footsteps and the relative silence of the person approaching exactly who it was.

"Tifa," I quietly greeted.

She sat by my side, calmly looping an arm around my shoulders and embracing me loosely. "Cloud, do you want lunch?"

My stomach murmured acidly. Keeping my gaze focused on the still hand that lay in my own, I slowly shook my head back and forth.

"You have to eat, Cloud," she admonished, her hug becoming a little tighter. "I'll bring it here. You won't have to leave his side. I know how much you want to be here when he opens his eyes."

Letting a desolate sigh leak from my lips, I finally turned to look at hr. Letting myself be absorbed by that soft, gentle chocolate gaze I've known since we were tiny children living beside one another in Nibelheim, I managed as much of a smile as I was capable of at the moment. "Tifa…."

"No need to thank me right now," she said, her full lips turning in the most serene smile I've ever known. Casting her gaze towards the bed, she nodded slowly, her long, wispy hair brushing softly against her back and cascading over her shoulders. "I'd want the same if it were you."

"I…" I tried awkwardly to start.

I knew she loved me. I loved her too. However, it wasn't the same between us – what she desired was an aspect of my heart I could never grant her. I'd once given that aspect to Aerith, only to have it crushed and mangled by Masamune's horrible length. I had sworn to myself long ago that I wouldn't allow myself to delve into that particular emotional tie again.

Her smile never became bitter as I feared it might. Instead it deepened, her eyes sparkling with some happy light I couldn't understand. "It's alright, Cloud. I know. It's painful to love again after you lose everything, neh? Painful enough to drive a person deep into the throes of denial." Reaching over with her free hand, she rested it on my cheek, keeping my focus on her gaze. I watched my reflection in her dark eyes as her lips remained brightly shining despite what was laying right beside us. "If you love again, I'm happy. Even if it's not me, I'm happy."

"But-"

"I'm happy because it means you have the opportunity to know your heart again, Cloud," she said, her nod firm with conviction.

It was then that I felt my cheeks burn fiercely. Was she insinuating-

"You're a cute couple."

I groaned audibly as I released his hand in lieu of slapping my forehead soundly.

So _that's _what Aerith and Yuffie have been cackling about! They really _do_ believe that we're… that I…!

For crying out loud.

She smiled gently, rubbing my shoulders with tender care. "Cloud, there's nothing wrong with it."

"Excuse me?" I bit. Oops. My voice was just a little more harsh than I'd intended it to be.

She didn't look the least bit put out by it, though. Instead her smile turned a little bit wry even as she trailed her hand from resting along the side of my face to my chin and gave it a squeeze, forcing my lips to purse as she mashed my cheeks in with her slender fingers. "Do you think I'm going to negatively judge you just because he's a man?"

I groaned as I closed my eyes. I wanted to nod, but instead I just angrily glared at the backsides of my eyelids, willing the Mako that infested me to shine through them and toss daggers at my childhood friend.

"If your souls connect, gender doesn't much matter," she said with a lighthearted tone. Her voice dropped a bit in her next statement, surprisingly level and serious, as she muttered, "Besides. You both are so very damaged by everything that's happened to you. If you can help heal his heart and he can help heal yours, I'd be delighted. You're my best friend, Cloud. Despite everything, regardless of anything that's ever occurred between us, you're still my best friend and always will be. It makes me sad to see you like this. If grasping Leon is what it takes to make you happy, then grasp him with all of your might. And… I haven't known him for that long, but he always seems so miserable. He's always bathed in darkness despite everyone's efforts. He needs someone to show him how to live in the light again. You need each other."

I let my eyes slowly drift open, looking at her. I didn't know what she could read in my expression. I didn't rightly know what I was feeling myself.

"So I'll cheer you on, Cloud. In fact, I wish you luck breaking through his icy exterior." She smiled brightly, taking her hand from my scratchy chin and patting my chest firmly. "I have no doubt that he feels something about you – heck, you should see the looks he gives you when you're tromping in from pouting outside and he's inebriated.

"Really?" I couldn't help but ask, my voice somewhat sky and squeaky.

"Really. He looks like he wants to ravish the hell out of you. A couple of times, he's admitted that for a guy, you're really cute."

I grumped as she softly laughed, turning to face him again and laying her head on my frame once more.

Reaching out again, I tenderly took Leon's hand in my own, grimacing as I felt that cool, unmoving flesh in mine. My free arm went around Tifa's shoulders to holder her in a loose embrace as I'd been doing since she and Barret returned form their misadventures.

Closing my eyes I found myself contemplatin all that had been occurring not just over the last few days, but over the months since I had returned with Cid in his shining gummi ship to this fortification that once was our childhood play-area and center-point of our world.

Most of my mind flew around what life had been like with Leon; rather obvious, given the current circumstances. I think my brain was trying to figure out if the girls were actually right in their horrid suspicions.

Alright, so I've admitted that he's good looking. I wouldn't say cute, exactly. More like rugged. Handsome. Rather like a sculpture cut out of a block of ice, beautiful to behold yet so very cold, so very ethereal, melting away with the heat of the living sun. How could anyone, regardless of gender, not see his beauty?

Taller than myself, lean, muscular, with a face chiseled and angled and hard. I'd seen features such as his before – and brown hair is definitely no rarity. Even in the soft, fragile falls that frame his almost surreal face they aren't out of the norm. Strong hands, gnarled a bit from years of handling weapons, accompanying a sword slinger's build. Long supple legs that carried him with feline grace wherever he went, calm and reassured. Skin darker than mine – still so pale for one who spends so much time out in Hollow Bastion's exterior spaces helping Cid to piece the grand fortress back together – but so fitting. The mysterious scar that sliced over the bridge of his almost fragile nose, tearing from beside his right eyebrow down to his left cheek, hinting towards a rough and boisterous past. And those storming eyes – at times it was like staring into the misty, miserable gray of an overcast day that promised sad, quiet rains; at other times it was like glancing into a wicked hurricane come to demolish anything that dared to stand in his path, and still others like staring into the frigid ice coating a frozen mountainside of gray stone that was completely unbending and immobile.

So physically, yes, he was incredibly attractive. Those large eyes captivate anyone who looks into them. Tifa was breathing her wows when she'd first laid eyes on him, as I recall, before he shot her a glance that silenced her completely and made her look away with fury burning on her face. I just remember that glance being very bland and accompanied by a quiet "Whatever."

Yuffie I could see basing an entire 'relationship' between us on my… appreciative glances. Tifa I could see basing a potential for a 'relationship' between us on his apparent appraisals of me when he was drunk off his gourd. Aerith, however, I wouldn't so quickly debase.

She was probably reading something deeper, something that even my mind refused to analyze.

Furrowing my brow, I huffed even as I lifted his hand back to my chin and pressed my nose against his wrist once more, letting my breath warm his cold skin.

Focusing once more on what they could possibly base their suspicions about me on, I sighed quietly once again. There was the way his behavioral pattern changed around me.

Around people he was unfamiliar with he was as untouchable as the stars, shrouded in the darkness of night yet just as inviting. A glimmering point of hope and dreams hovering eternally out of reach, shining like a distant sun yet doing nothing to warm those who stared at it. He was even more standoffish than me; that's truly saying something. I'd once thought that the mask I put on for the world, that lie I wore to keep myself from getting hurt once again as I'd been hurt while living my childhood, was cold and cynical. That thought lasted until I'd met Leon and experienced the touch of his frigid personality.

His friends received a slightly warmer reception – instead of him being so cold it burned, he was almost… tepid. Not quite lukewarm. He wasn't so quick to toss them the "Whatever, you don't exist in my world; if you want someone to listen to you to talk to a wall" attitude as he was with strangers. He would actually listen to their speech, consider what they were saying….

Then go tell them to talk to a wall.

I'd considered it rude as hell. Aerith had kindly told me that it was the defense mechanism he used against the world, rather reflective of my initially irritating indifference to the ideals that drove my companions in AVALANCHE. She'd eluded to some horrible past he'd experienced, that he won't tell even me about, that injured him so very much that he hid behind a wall of stone, encasing his heart within an impenetrable block of protection that as much saved him from the world as it did hinder him from experiencing life. She forgave him.

It took me a while to get over that myself.

It was his change of attitude towards me during the tournaments that really started developing what might almost be… alright, so it is a bit of affection. On my part, anyway.

The fact that he went completely out of his way to defend me was touching. For the first time in a long time, I wasn't ridiculed for being inadequate but rather comforted and cared for. He hadn't lambasted me when I'd frozen fighting Cerberus (what can I say? Get stepped on by a three-headed dog that breathes fire and is the size of a building. Let's see how willing you are to fight it next time you're looking into its beady red eyes) but rather taken it on with his Lionheart gunblade, beating it down then asking if I was alright. His voice had been soothing, quiet, concerned and surprisingly gentle. His touch was so very soft. At first I'd almost scoffed at the notion that he was babying me, thinking me incapable of doing anything for myself as most of my life had proven to me, but then I realized the truth – that was just Leon's way of being nice.

Instead of kicking me along the way like he booted the satyr Phil while walking back to the hot tubs (sent the hairy little bastard smacking into a wall for being in our way when I 'needed urgent care,' too) he lead me with the tender touch of a friend.

Scratch that. It was more than a friendly touch. He'd lead me by my hand.

I felt my cheeks begin to color as I recalled how soft his hands were when he'd set himself to kneed my knotted shoulders and ease the fear out of my body. Of how gorgeous I realized his body was when he slid into the pool next to me, both of us as bare as the days we were born. Of how delicate his smile was, how beautiful his face was when he flashed that ghost of a grin.

I think that smile is his most charming, most precious aspect of his person. And from what I've garnered, I'm the only one who's seen it since Cid snatched him away from the falling remains of his home so many years ago.

It was delicate like the petals of a rose, soft and light, fragile as thinly spun glass that could shatter the moment any outside force interfered with it. It was so sad in its depths, yet at the same time so very flooded with hope and a whimpered wish for everything, for the first time in countless ages, to be alright again. It was a smile of misery combined with futile dreams that stood the strong possibility of never seeing fruition.

And it was directed at me.

Did he feel… eh… something beyond friendship towards me?

Because, deep within my being, I was steadily realizing that the small smile he would give me, that scarce expression that would appear in my direction and fade away like a snowflake grasped by a warm hand the moment any other person appeared, seemed to be only for me. And to make things scarier, I found myself relishing it. I wanted to take every one of those slender smiles he cast me and treasure them like some love-sick girl crushing over a man far too mature for her, keeping them locked up in my heart and safe from the world.

I wondered how his face would look with a true, solid smile gracing it.

Leaning my head against Tifa's, feeling her soft black hair press against my cheek as she sighed reverently and tightened her hold a little, I let a slow breath seep from my nostrils while I stared blankly at the color-sapping white sheets that covered his body.

I pressed my lips to the back of his hand.

I found myself wishing that he did in fact hold some feeling beyond friendship towards me.

Because, despite the short amount of time we'd spent together at Hollow Bastion, despite the few encounters we've had, every moment and every meeting has been indescribably sweet. Even losing to Sora in the Hades Cup was so satisfying, to topple from my stance only to hear Leon roar in rage and charge blindly with Lionheart overpowered and glowing with mystical energy. The feeling that he'd been fighting for me was incredible. It caused him to become completely unfocused and ultimately lose, but still the gesture was more than appreciated. It was surprisingly… I don't know. Extraverted – at least for him.

Tifa rose from her seat, casting me a small nod. "I'll go fetch your lunch, Cloud."

I nodded in reply. "Thank you," I managed before she retreated from the room. I heard her sidestep and giggle a soft 'good morning' to someone.

I arched a brow, turning to see who'd entered when Tifa didn't receive a response. No response severely limited the number of individuals who could have walked in.

Sure enough, I set my gaze on the Heartless. It shuffled over, casting me a cautionary look before jumping onto the bed with Leon.

I watched it suspiciously as it looked his body over.

Springing to my feet, I screamed at it when it plunged its sharply clawed hand into his chest, grasping his heart tightly. My first reaction was to attempt to rip it away, to tear its inky little arm off and bludgeon it to death with it.

I realized before I throttled it that jarring it might actually kill Leon. I barely restrained myself, shivering in rage and fear, glaring at it. I hardly heard Barret and Cid as they ran in and had similarly harsh reactions. I didn't take much notice of Yuffie and Aerith running in, the flower girl trotting to the Heartless and sitting on the bed beside it, her hand lightly resting on its back and her emerald eyes huge upon her pale face.

"You little-" I started to hiss before Aerith interrupted me.

"Have faith, Cloud. I don't think it's trying to hurt him. It might be trying to help him."

Shaking in nervous rage, I stood helplessly, Leon's cold hand still in my own.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies:

BlueFlamesRedTears91: Sorry I didn't get to reply to your review in chapter 15, but I'd been trying to post it and subsequently beating my head in over my lack of ability to connect to dastardly ff . net for hours before I received this review in my inbox. (sweatdrop) Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like the story! And you didn't say too much at all. (grin) And thank you for informing me that you didn't find any grievous errors with the story. That does make me happy. (happy dance)

DarkStarPhoenix: Huzzah! Soul Eater kicks massive booty. I love that sword. And sorry I couldn't get this out earlier, but I was on fast cruise. Craptastic fast cruise. Grr. But it did give me the opportunity to finish chapter 18 and the first 3 pages of chapter 19 (yep, watch was that damned boring). BTW, look forward to pictures! I suck at drawing, but I love artwork. (grin) Yeah, our network doesn't have a word processor on it. It's not due to the age of the system but rather to security purposes. Freaking retarded if you ask me, but I don't run this place. Heh. BTW, your diet sounds like it sucks. (grump) Ick. Diet is a 4 letter word that should never exist. Hope you have/had fun in the Blue Mountains!

Dark Mog: Ha ha! You were a chocobo breeding fiend, eh? Heh. I handed my card to a guy at work and told him to breed me a gold, as I didn't get that into it. He had fun doing it for me – named it Squally, too, once he got it. (laughs) So yes, I had Cloud jumping up and down on the Squally's back after every victory. That made for a horrible li'l fic that I'll be posting after I catch up on the prewritten material on this fic. And yep, the graphics will make your eyes bleed after KH2. Tried it. Gagged. And total 'woah' on tapping an unknown phobia there! Didn't realize that. Geez. Glad you're liking those chapters despite never seeing the movie, though! Hopefully my next 'unknown' movie does as well. (nods) And that red-eyed 'surprise' is a bit of a ways off, most unfortunately – I'm chomping at the bit to get to it, myself. Grump goes me. BTW, thanks for making me laugh myself stupid over the 'shirt-ripping habits'. Heh heh. Now I'm going to run off and watch Star Trek 2 just for the fun of it – favorite freaking Sci-Fi movie of all time!

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Standard fare – any desire to comments should be directed to my plushie. (gestures to plushie that pounces the 'Submit Review' menu and bites it with his li'l fangs, growling like a rabid chipmunk) 


	17. Portal

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 17  
The SeeD Commander – Portal

I was so very tired.

I don't know how long I'd been fighting my way back from the pleasant sanctuary of my dreams, from that sunlit field that is encompassed within Balamb Garden's sprawling lands where I'd bid Rinoa yet another farewell. I don't know what span of time had passed between me spreading my fingers for that dollop of twilight that stained the pristine sky and the moment when I started to truly lose hope.

I'd promised her that I would fight. I'd sworn that I would attempt to find that happiness that escaped me in the living world once more, to open my eyes to all possibilities rather than just allow myself to be encased in the merriment of my dreams and satisfy my longing for joy through that superficial mean.

She'd been uplifted by my reach, by my desire to return. She'd been overjoyed when I'd finally come to terms with the probability that my heart was seeking redemption in the eyes of one of my comrades at Hollow Bastion, that there was a chance for me to actually be happy once more.

I know that my dreams are constructed by my mind, but….

Sometimes I must wonder if perhaps their spirits are actually calling me from the lands the Heartless swept them to, if their interpretations and their words call from shadows rather than from my own torn soul.

After all, given what I'd seen in my own past, nothing would surprise me. Not even that.

Once you've been through a disjointed bout of time compression or two, mysticism becomes somewhat commonplace, I suppose.

Rinoa had been quite happy to bid me farewell, giving me an encompassing kiss and a tight, warm hug. I'd relished the touch of her lips upon mine, the soft caress of her tongue, the light flicker of her eyelashes brushing upon my skin and her nails digging into my jacket. Her lips, full and flushed from our exchange, turned in a brilliant smile as her chocolate eyes closed merrily while she told me to do my best with my new companions, to open my heart to the one that still lived who'd managed to catch my eye.

I'd lost track of the time that'd passed since she faded into nothing, since I watched Balamb Garden fade into darkness.

It was so very cold. Perhaps that was all that was keeping me 'conscious,' so to say.

My gloved hands were tightly gripping my biceps as I staggered slowly towards that small glimmer of light that still had yet to approach, each step heavier and heavier as I dragged my body through the plain of darkness I was journeying through. My breath slipped from my lips in icy clouds, barely discernable from the impermeable shadows that enveloped me by the faint light of that distant sparkle I aimed to reach. I was shivering without control, my eyes narrowed and frozen, my body lagging terribly.

I just wanted to go back. Rinoa's arms were so warm.

She'd read me the riot act, certainly, but we'd move on. I'd be happy again. We'd be home.

As I reflected on my environment, on the reason I was putting myself through this dark trip, I sighed even as my shuffled tromping came to an end.

Was it really so worth it?

Was life so… desirable?

"I'd keep moving if I were you. This is the place where no one should ever stop."

I almost yelped in shock, turning sharply on my heel to face the direction that unexpected, unknown voice had erupted from. Turning keenly around, facing back towards where I'd traveled from, I scowled. My gray eyes were narrowed dangerously, my scowl intense. Releasing my deathly tight grip on myself, I assumed a more confident and sure stance rather than being hunched over to preserve my steadily depleting body heat.

Blinking, I stared at the young boy I found myself facing.

I didn't recognize him.

He was eerie to say the very least. Perhaps my mind had finally folded in under the weight of the darkness pressing upon my spirit and derived this vision of insanity.

After all, the child looked strangely like a younger version of the man who'd appeared in the emblem that took the sky when I'd faced that robed person. Same silvery hair. Same strange, almost glowing aquamarine eyes. Same muscular build. Same alabaster skin. Same softly smirking lips.

Just a few years younger – perhaps a year or two older than Sora – and lacking the black wing the older person summoned by the spell had sported. Also, rather than the heavy black trench coat and multitudes of belts, the child wore a tight duel-colored shirt of yellow and black with black jeans, blue overlays to those pants that reminded me of oversized chaps and white and blue sneakers.

Other than the age difference, the attire and the lack of additional appendages, the two were differentiated by their expressions. The monster who'd struck me with his huge sword radiated confidence and malicious hate. The boy who addressed me in the dark was….

He was sad. Very, very sad.

"Who are you?" I ventured, my voice flooded with ice.

A soft smile turned his melancholic lips as he shrugged. "Just a helper."

"Poor answer," I acknowledged. "I don't need help."

The boy's aquamarine eyes bore into my gaze, him not flinching away as I narrowed my eyes into a harsher glare than I'd sported previously. "I'd say you do. Otherwise you wouldn't be so lost."

I was silent for a few moments as he sat down Indian-style on the nonexistent ground, his hands folding in his lap and his eyes remaining set on mine.

"Whatever."

"Really," he quietly said. "You've got a lot of people back there waiting for you to come back. They're suffering because you're taking so long."

I snorted softly. "I'm working on it."

"You're lost."

I turned back to him, a huff of exasperation on my lips. "Really."

"Where is your light?"

Blinking at the sudden question, I dumbly pointed towards the faint twilit flicker I'd been attempting to approach.

"Do you have any desire to reach that light?"

I paused as I considered the answer. "All that lies in that light is pain. Memories of my failures. Existing without her. It's… cold."

"So the answer is 'no.'"

"Correct," I replied.

The boy lightly bit his lip as he looked at the ground. "You've been trying to abandon your life, haven't you? Why would anyone in their right mind sacrifice themselves to this?" He gestured swiftly towards our surroundings, his motion barely visible in the faint light that I'd turned my back on to speak with him. "This is no place for the living. Hell, it isn't even a place for the dead. All that lies here is emptiness and misery, a life of reflections. If you're trying to escape your memories, you shouldn't stop here – here, memories are all you'll have. They're all that constitute your existence."

I sighed, glancing away. "So it was a mistake to leave Balamb Garden."

"You can't go back there," he replied. "That place exists here. Didn't you notice those who'd escaped, those whose bodies you didn't come across, weren't in your dreams? That's because the dreams you have are the damned crying for release. Those times they're remembered, the moments when they're embraced by a spirit of light, they celebrate and attempt to extend their time in that light. The darkness-swallowed damned become your dreams, your happiest and fondest moments during your rest. If you truly die, you won't go there.

I couldn't help but stare, my eyes widening out of their harsh glower. "What…?" I barely whispered.

"You won't go there. You'll be a part of this place. A death in darkness doesn't result in the heavenly pleasure you're thinking of; hell, it isn't even truly death. It's due to the way you were struck – what's killing you isn't the sword that pierced your heart, but the darkness that sword encased your heart in. It's consuming your light bit by bit; your body has been cured, but your heart is so injured that you're still here. If you let yourself die as you are, your body in the world of light will fade and come to this land to be a part of it forever. You'll live here until you lose yourself completely. Your body will disintegrate until all that's left is the small wad of darkness that once was your heart. And then you'll be the same as all of us. You'll be a Heartless.

My eyes nearly rolled out of their sockets. "You're the Shadow, aren't you?"

His smile was faint, nearly nonexistent, as he raised his aquamarine gaze to meet my eyes. "I know what I'm talking about. This is where I am. Forgotten completely, encased forever in the shadows of Kingdom Hearts."

"This… is Kingdom Hearts?"

"Until the door to the light is opened, yes. The dark Kingdom none can escape unless they have the heart to do so."

Clearing my throat, I approached the child and seated myself beside him, turning back to face that glimmer of twilight as I did. Looking at him, I arched a brow. "So how do you suppose I can escape?"

He returned his gaze to the ground. "The person I'd depended on to draw me back… he should have given up on me a long time ago. We'd been moving apart ever since she arrived in our lives. I always tried so hard to be there with him, but… it was obvious who his heart belongs to. She is the princess of his heart. He is her knight in shining armor, there to save the day."

I couldn't help but bite my own lip as memories washed over me. Memories of Rinoa. Memories of Seifer. Memories of Edea.

His quiet voice continued, mindless of my distraction. "So I gave up on trying to be reunited with them. After all…." A hopeless laugh burst from his wryly turned lips. "After all, who wants to be the forgotten the forgotten third wheel? Who wants to stand by and watch the person he loves dedicate their lives to someone besides him? Who wants… who wants to be left behind? So I thought it'd be better to go out with a bang, better to always be remembered."

"You willingly came here," I observed.

"Yeah. Never expected to be assimilated."

Looking away from the boy, I sighed quietly. "And that's why you wish to help me?"

I felt his shoulder move as he scooted to sit pressed against my side, shrugging slightly. "No one deserves this fate. It's lonely. It just makes you want to sleep forever, you know? But that option isn't open here. In twilight, in actual death, maybe. But not here. All that's here is the ability to lose yourself, lose your memories, lose your heart."

"Why don't you stay, then? It's obvious your memories are hurting you," I softly observed.

"Because, no matter how much it hurts, I don't want to forget," he replied. "My memories, as horrible as they are at points, are what make me. I don't want to forget myself, and it's driving me absolutely mad that I am." Scowling, he snorted even as he glared at the ground. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye as he grit his teeth. "All I can think of is that there's got to be a way out of here, even for someone as lost as I am. Darkness can't be everything. I still want light. Not to destroy it, either – I want to be a part of it. I want to hold it again. I hate it here so much… that's why I'm wandering in your land. Maybe surrounded by light I can become apart of it again; maybe I can remember who I am."

I turned my head to fully gaze at the intriguing boy at my side. "So you have no desire to destroy light, as all other Heartless do?"

He scoffed, flashing me a brilliantly arrogant smirk "Come on. What do you take me for? I'm different from them." His smirk slowly faded into a light smile as he shrugged again, his shoulder brushing my arm as he closed his eyes. "I just want to remember who I am. I want to remember the name of the boy with his princess. I want to remember the name of the girl who wouldn't wake up."

"You want to remember yourself."

"Yeah," he sighed, his smile fading away. "I thought that maybe if I went back to the land of light, it'd help. That's why I passed through the door. It's a one-way trip, but if I can remember myself before I completely lose my heart, it might be worth it."

"You're truly dedicated to this, aren't you?" I observed.

"Well, yeah. As you should be to living."

I blinked mutely.

"You don't really want to die, do you?"

I looked away, facing that twilit shadow on my relative horizon. I felt my lips turn with a frown.

"He'll cry if you do."

Starting, I turned and stared at the boy, backing away as if his very touch burned me. "What…?"

"Why else do you think I'm trying to help you? I'm depending on the lights in your land to help me regain myself. It doesn't help me if those lights fade away."

"Light… fading?"

"Yeah. The girls are depressed. The guys aren't much better." Looking blandly at me, he snorted. "The big man with the gun for an arm has been ranting and raving angrily since he came back. The girl with the long dark hair's been sitting by the spiky-haired blonde's side every day. The hyperactive chick with the metal stars' been a lot less bouncy. The woman in pink's horribly sad. The old man's been… surprisingly gentle. The big red dog-thing is moping around like an idiot. And that spiky guy hasn't left your side. He looks like crap from lack of food and sleep."

Well, that was certainly blunt. I narrowed my eyes slightly. "You're saying I'm the cause of their suffering, and that hinders you."

"Bingo. Give the man a prize. He figured something out." The boy huffed. "Damn, you're freaking slow."

As I fell silent and glared away from the boy, he continued without prompting. "You have a hard life. I'll acknowledge that. You lost everything. I'll acknowledge that, too. All your old friends and the person you loved with all your heart died. Damned sad. But you know what?" He snorted ruefully. "You've still got your light. You still have your memories. You still have your soul, no matter how destroyed it is. You still have your mind. You still have your friends. You have your new home. And you have a person who adores you so much he went ballistic when he found you skewered and is currently a blubbering mess. You should treasure all you have. Don't throw it all away. You'll regret it forever if you do."

I felt my shoulders sag. Somewhere in my heart I knew he was right. "I should go back… for my friends."

"Friends aren't enough, really. They forget and move on. Kind of like mine."

Looking at him, I pursed my lips. "I see. Then-"

"Aren't you enough to live for?"

I pondered what he meant.

"Everyone else around the place seems to think you're worth living for. Why don't you have that opinion of yourself?"

"Because… I'm a failure."

He smirked at me. "So you've failed. So what?"

That statement drew just the wrong reaction out of me. I was instantly angry, damned set on throttling the arrogant twerp right then and there. Turning sharply, my boot planting itself behind me so that I could spring to action in a bare moment, I bit at the child, "So what? That failure resulted in the deaths of my friends! The destruction of my world!"

"Bullshit. It would've fallen anyway. The Heartless are damned effective at what they do – I should know, being one."

My teeth grit as I felt a snarl of sheer frustration boil in my throat.

"As I was saying, so what? I've failed, too. My world got destroyed. I lost my friends. I've lost my soul and my heart, my memories and my mind. Heck, wandering around that place you're in, I've been remembering stuff that I don't even think is really me. It's funny, actually. But despite all of that, I'm not giving up. I believe I'm worth enough to live for. I may not have anyone waiting for me, I may not have any place to belong to once I recover myself, but I want to live for me. I want to experience what else life has to throw at me. It may be rotten, it may be terrible, but it'll be new, and it sure as hell won't be more of this degradation I go through daily in this land. I think you've got the potential to escape this place because, despite your doubts, your heart is incredibly strong. The only thing that's weakening you is your self-loathing. Don't you think you're worth living for?"

I paused my oncoming rant, turning the boy's proclamations over and over in my brian.

Was it really so simple as that…?

"Don't you want to know what it might be like to love again?

Bowing my head slowly, I let the breath I'd been holding in my strained lungs slide away. "I… suppose so."

"Suppose? Is that it?"

Gritting my teeth, I glared at the child. He certainly was a pushy little brat.

"Is it?" he asked gain, tilting his head slightly, his silvery hair shimmering.

"No, alright? I do. I do want to know what it will be like."

"Even if it's different?"

"Just because it might be different doesn't mean that it wouldn't be as sweet," I mumbled, letting my glower slide off his lithe frame.

I barely caught a glimpse of his proud, triumphant smirk. He looked like the cat who'd just caught the goldfish in the bowl. "Thought so. Look."

Lifting my gaze, I gasped.

That dim light I'd been attempting to follow was so brilliant, so close!

When the hell had that happened?

"See? Your light has been shining fiercely for you, calling you desperately. Your self-loathing was holding your vision of it at bay. All it takes is resolve. You want your light? Grasp it. And this time, don't let go."

Rising to my feet, basking in the surprising warmth that flowed from the inviting orifice of light, I sighed and closed my eyes. The numb sensation that had covered my extremities slowly gave way, feeling returning to my toes and fingers. My nose didn't feel like it was going to fall off my face, and I could swear that I could feel icicles melting out of my eyelashes and hair. I could feel, as odd as it was considering I was standing in a dark landscape on what felt like solid ground, the brush of sheets over my body, the press of a mattress upon my back. Something sharp was piercing my chest, cool but not overly painful, keeping a light and easy grip upon my heart, firm enough to hold it in place but loose enough to allow it to pump and drive my blood through my veins. A light breeze whistled past us, rustling our hair and teasing me with its sensuous scent. I took an unconscious step forward.

Pausing as soon as I'd started my motion again, I looked back at the boy who still sat on the pitch-black ground. "What about you?" I quietly enquired, my voice guilty and sad.

As reluctant as I was to admit it, I don't think I would have found this path if it weren't for the boy's assistance. I couldn't just leave him behind in that terrible darkness.

Looking at me with his forlorn aquamarine eyes, he flashed a small and easy smile. "That light isn't calling for me. I can't go through that."

"So… you're still trapped."

He shrugged, his motion small and almost undetectable. "I'm out there. I'm just as all of my brethren appear. Just another Heartless, I'm afraid."

"How is it that you're there and here? The same as me?"

"Nope. I assimilated myself with the wrap that black-winged angel put over your heart. He encased you in the shadows of Kingdom Hearts, so as my heart is encased in that darkness I was able to join you to say hello, so to speak. The Kingdom's darkness is as much of a part of me as I am a part of it."

"I see…." Well, that explained the strange sensation in my chest at least. If he truly was a Heartless, he probably had his inky little hand wrapped around my heart.

"We'll meet again out there. We may not be able to have these marvelously stimulating conversations," he inserted a sly smirk, "but we'll definitely meet again."

"So you _are_ the Shadow."

He nodded, his silver hair glistening in the light that cascaded out of my apparent exit from the dark realm we inhabited. "Yep. Kind of hard to understand things when the mind's almost completely degraded. Kind of impossible to talk when you don't have lips."

"But you're speaking to me here. Your mind can't be completely gone."

"Because this is my heart, not my mind."

As convoluted as it seemed, I could understand his reasoning. A small nod was granted to him. "Then I'll see you out there," I quietly uttered, lifting my hand and giving him a respectful salute of farewell.

Lifting a hand, he sighed and waved to me. "Bye. And… thanks. Thanks for not destroying their light."

I allowed a small smile to touch my lips before I turned away from the boy shrouded in his darkness and stepped through that impossibly bright portal to reality.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies:

polynesia: Nope, didn't get a review from you from chapter 15. But hey, it's 'kay! You're providing such nice reviews pretty regularly that missing a chapter doesn't crush my spirits. (laughs) Yeah, I probably SHOULD finish the story up right now for KH2, but I'm having fun level building like crazy - level 7 summons! Huzzah! I love Stitch. Glad you liked the 'Hugs for Heartless' button. I suck at drawing, but I thought it was cute. (flush) Steal it all you like! And glad you liked chapter 16. I was on the fence about that one - I tried to keep Cloud not only in character and keep his past intact, but make it fairly realistic. I was afraid I just had him whining like a pathetic wanker. Glad it didn't come off like that - however, I'm truly embarrassed about all the typos; you can tell I was falling asleep/drunkenly drooling on my keyboard when I was finishing that chapter up. Oh, and as for your anatomical questions... (sheepish grin, flakes out) KH magic. (LMAO) Actually, figured the tissue of the lung's toasted seeing as how Sephy slashed that huge blade of his out after a straight puncture - collateral damage and all. And the human brain can survive for 'bout 60 seconds without a fresh supply of oxygen, as I recall. But let's just say that I flaked out, that I don't have any of my old Gray's Anatomy books (sold those to get anthologies and theology books when my interests shifted) and I like dramatic crap. (snigger) Kingdom Hearts magic, dude. C'mon. Phoenix downs. 'nuff said.

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Like it? Hate it? Please see the plushie. (Ansem plushie is tossed at her monitor, collides with it and plops uselessly onto her desk. A bit of stuffing remains stuck next to the 'Submit Review' menu option) 


	18. Instincts

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 18  
The Heartless – Instincts

I watched, silent and bitter, as the man walked towards his light.

Why couldn't I do the same?

Why couldn't I find my light?

A desolate sigh escaped my lips as I ran my fingers thorugh my hair, resting my other hand on my hip. "Well, might as well get out of here," I muttered to the dark atmosphere. "No need to rest in this guy's heart's darkness. He doesn't need any more weight on his soul than he's already got. Time to remove my influence."

Moping quietly, I slowly backed away. Away from the soft auras that flitted about me, emotions carried through the black pith like frigid winter zephyrs. Away from the alien darkness that encompassed the lank man's soul, sadness that refused to fade and misery so thick it could be tasted in the proverbial air.

I slid back into my own darkness, into that silken environment of faded heart and forgotten memories, that land I have inhabited ever since I watched the final sliver of light that would be in my life vanish completely.

Slowly but surely my recognition of my human self was lost. I could no longer feel my hair, no longer detect a straight and proud stance. My fingers were no longer slender and strong. I felt twitching atop my skull – I knew that once again I had antennae. My claws lightly raked against my palm as I clenched my left hand into a loose fist.

I slowly came to realize where I was. I was no longer in that raven-pitched land with no definable horizon, no longer staring at an empty plain of nothing. The bedroom I was in slowly came into focus, colors seeping from darkness and overtaking it to leave nothing more than shadows remaining in that overwhelming black environment's wake. I was seated on white sheets, slowly drawing my hand out of a person's chest, sliding my claws away from a warm, pulsating heart.

Part of me screamed for me to return my hand to that heart, to rip it free of that chest and crush it in my fingers. I shuddered violently, my hand shivering before me but inches above the t-shirt, my other hand reaching for my wrist to hold that hand at bay.

I shivered as I felt every set of eyes in the room focusing on me. Lifting my gaze, I stared at the gathering in the room. I stared into eyes that were watching me cautiously, waiting for me to do what comes naturally to all Heartless, waiting to rip me away from their friend and destroy me if necessary.

Slender arms gently wrapped around me, pulling me away before I could do anything rash.

If I'd possessed the capability, I would have sighed in relief. Instead I simply bowed my head, relaxing slowly into the embrace that held me and laid my twitching claws on the wrists of those arms that kept me from giving in to instinctual longing. My antennae drooped as I leaned back against the person who'd torn me away from the prone victim of darkness upon the bed.

I heard the woman in pink quietly speaking, her tone soft and soothing as she lifted one of her hands from the protective circle she'd formed around me to hold me at bay and lightly petted my head. She was humming quietly, attempting to calm me. I simply sagged against her to indicate that she had indeed succeeded.

I looked at the body laid on the bed with triumph. I no longer had any desire to rip his light away.

Turning slightly, I snuggled into hr embrace as she spoke to everyone else in the room. My gaze remained on the man I'd spoken to in his darkness embraced heart, watching as his eyelids slowly fluttered, hazed blue-gray eyes looking with confusion at the ceiling.

The room burst into happy exclamations.

As everyone congregated around the newly awakened man and I was released from the pink woman's gentle hug, I slid out of the door.

I entered the hallway and leaned against the door, staring at the burning braziers that lit the wing we were occupying. Shaking, I slid down that brace I was allowing to support my frame and seated myself on the floor.

I'd almost given in.

Just when I was becoming confident in my differentiation from my brethren, I was lusting to crush the heart of the man I'd just strived to save.

And here I'd thought I was so different. Because I have the lofty goal to keep my fellow Heartless from gathering the lights of the worlds and their peoples into our dark Kingdom, because I didn't charge for light to wrap my hands around it and claim it as my own, I'd thought I was above them.

Of course, though, even in my memories I was seeking darkness, destroying light. I was encouraging the Heartless to come.

I didn't fear the darkness as I watched it consume the sky.

I didn't fear the darkness as I researched it, writing multiple thesis papers concerning its power and its creation.

I harnessed the power of the Heartless, able to create shadowy adversaries based off of my greatest foe….

I harnessed the power of the Heartless, typing a personalized creation of darkness to my person.

Holding my head as I sat on the floor, I stared at the ground as I shivered.

I had wanted, even before I'd become a Shadow, to harness darkness. To destroy light. To demolish hearts.

And I'd almost given into that longing again.

Was that the reason I'd become what I am? Was that why I'd been absorbed by the dark?

Somewhere deep within myself, I felt tears, piteous sobs of hopeless realization wash through me. I felt hopelessness as the longing to refuse my instinctual lusts wavered.

The door slowly pushed open, sliding me along the floor.

Looking up, I shuddered as I found myself looking at the old blonde.

He cast me a smile, his teeth gripping his cigarette firmly, as he squatted beside me and lightly patted my head. He said something to me, his eyes gentle and kind.

I stared at him.

And, for that moment, those instincts that had almost driven me to forget myself even more than I already had faded. Reaching out, I placed my clawed hand onto his chest, laying my palm over his beating heart as he trustingly remained within my reach, not backing away.

I refused to give up.

After all, if the man on the bed could find his light in darkness, I could to. He just had to focus on the person who was most special to him now, who would lead him from his hopelessness.

I knew somewhere in the depths of my being that the reason I'd truly left the confines of the Kingdom was to find someone like that for myself. I knew that such a person existed for me.

All I had to do was find it.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: Well, hate to say it, but that's it for 'Behind Closed Doors' until May. Ye auld call of duty is taking me back out to sea, so I'll have no capability for uploading any new files to this site. However, reviews will be much appreciated and will result in expediting rapid updates of this thing once I get back in - reviews will be redirected to my shipboard email address, so I can read them there and be inspired to continue to not pay attention to my job and write fanfiction on watch instead. (laughs)

Review replies:

Shadow Cat17: Oh, stayed up late just to read this? I'm flattered! Thank you for the review, and I'll continue as quickly as I can when I get back on dry land. Glad you enjoyed this story so far!

Dark Mog: Well, the Heartless had to get in there somehow! That Shadow's a damned important character, after all. So, you're in love with the hot tub scene too? Yeah, I'm a whore for that one. I love the thought of two bishies lounging together in steamy hot water. (cackle) Thanks for the compliment on Cloud's chapter - I was seriously worried that he was waffling badly, and it's nice to know that it didn't come off as being completely 'ho hum'. And yeah, play a 2d side-scroller first. It WILL slaughter your brain cells to see gorilla men running around with big bobble heads. Owwy. (clutches skull) The pain still gets me between the eyes. It made me sigh in relief to play FF8 again. And Kirk's fleshy man boobs... (dies laughing) Gee, thanks for the giggle bfore work! Sheesh. (snigger) At least it was William and not Forest. Dr. McCoy's fleshy man boobs would've scarred me in my delicate childhood. (snork) Glad you liked my chocobo story, BTW. Thanks for reading it!

DarkStarPhoenix: Hey! Cool! Glad you had fun. And if you hate stairs, you'd hate my ship. I climb stairs all day long. Especially if I'm standing a roving watch instead of reactor operator - if I'm standing Instrument Watch (it's the reactor operator that walks around outside and makes certain that the plant's operating alright, basically) I'm going up and down 3 floors at least 4 times an hour. Then I have to walk 2 floors up out of the plant once that's done, and 2 floors up to my berthing for bed. Then it's back down 3 floors to my work center. It's a pain in the ass, but a girl gets used to it. (shrugs) And camp, eh? Have fun! Go with your mad English skills. (hi-five) Don't worry about your lame pun. We use 'em all the time in my work center. We are the epitome of lame. (cackle) I couldn't help but have Riku be a snarky little twerp and beat common sense into Squally's head. The visuals were too damned worth it. And yep, really do have KH2. You should see about ordering it through Amazon if your PS2 can play NA (North America) region. Or do you have that PAL 2 region? (shudder) Iggy. Sorry if you do. Anyway, hope this last update before I head out is good enough for you! (rings gong to announce chapter arrival)

polynesia: Ah ha ha, I understand. It's rather like my my friends and I - we've straight sat in Starbucks for hours on end, three days straight, discussing all of the religious symbolism and meaning behind such in Neon Genesis Evangelion. Three. Days. We're losers. (laughs) Or when we have debates for a week about politics and world fiascos. It's so hard to believe that we're still friends, considering how often we piss each other off with such conversations. Thanks for your criticism about Cloud - yeah, alright, so he does sit on ceilings and whine his fool head off to himself. I guess I would be a bit hard pressed to make him too whiny. I'd almost forgotten how IC him whimpering like a beaten puppy is. And yeah, I made the Shadow's identity obvious, neh? Still, he's adorable. Couldn't help it. Glad you're loving him. (grin) And I'm the only author right now that can infuriate you? (shifts from foot to foot, bright smile) Heh heh. Cool! At least I hope this chapter didn't infuriate you, though, seeing as how I'm not going to be on dry land and updating until May. But hey - rest easy in the fact that I'm already halfway done with chapter 19 (watch was dull when I stood it on my shift) so there'll be new material when I return.

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Like it? Hate it? Submit as the plushie demands. (yanks pullstring, blinks as it snarks "Darkness is the heart's _true_ essence!") Eh… heh heh. Forget the plushie. Just submit! If you want to, that is. 


	19. Waves

Thanks so much to everyone that reviewed while I was out to sea! Your dedicated reading and reviewing of this story ensured its updating. So without further adieu, a new chapter, typed during the boredom of watch. Huzzah! (rings gong to amplify the announcement) You guys encouraged me to write up to chapter 24 while trapped on the briny blue. Thanks again!

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 19  
The Keyblade Master – Waves

We were hardly able to maintain our course as the wind picked up and violently buffeted our bodies. Racing rapidly over the rising waves, we aimed as well as we could for that dark silhouette impressed upon the ominous night sky, the troubled clipper that was being tossed from wave to wave and driving as well as it could towards the jagged coastline.

My eyes narrowed as the rough wind pressed against them, eyelids barely protecting my irises from the whipping strands of my hair that blew across my face. As we approached, I saw smaller shapes of ships appearing from the inky dark of night, flanking the struggling clipper with sails fully furled and hovering oddly above the water that should normally carry wayward vessels. My heart plummeted for a moment into my stomach.

Battleship Heartless.

Ultima Weapon fully formed in my hand, I felt my lips turn in a grimace of determination. "Goofy! Donald! There they are!" I shouted over the roaring storm winds even as I took stock of our enemies' numbers. As we swiftly approached, I counted five. Not so bad.

Gripping the keyblade tightly in my hands, I turned it slightly so the slicing tendrils that graced the back of the weapon were facing forward. My toes curled in my shoes as I prepared for my maneuver. Opening my lips in a roar, I sped up my flight and charged recklessly for the clipper's port side and the three Battleships that hovered there.

I connected heavily with the first of the Heartless, Ultima Weapon squealing against the metal of the Battleship's starboard cannon. My muscles screamed in agony as I pressed my bodyweight and my momentum against the slowly sailing vessel's large gun, feeling the wood that held that weapon to the ship's deck cracking and giving. A satisfying snap filled the air even as the captain of the little vessel threw its hands into the air and ducked away from the shining silver barrel as it gave way and exploded, the round within its chamber backfiring and coating the Heartless in its ridiculous hat with black soot. The Battleship helplessly spun in the air a few times as I sailed past, my wrists throbbing from the effort expended on them, aiming for the next vessel.

My foot solidly connected with the next Battleship's gun, forcing the entire small ship to dip violently and its fired round to plunge into the water. The Heartless that commanded the Battleship slashed at me with one clawed hand, the other firmly maintained on the wheel of its ship. Jumping off the cannon, letting the Battleship bobble with the sudden change in weight, I sprang high then spun in midair, diving for the deck proper. My keyblade speared the little captain right through the center of its head.

As the Heartless burst into slimy bubbles of black ink that moments later evaporated into dark smoky nothingness, I grabbed the wheel of the ridiculously small ship. Turning it sharply, I aimed for the third vessel in the line – I cringed as I heard cannons fire ahead and behind me.

"C'mon!" I cried as I urged the ship forward, ramming its bulk firmly into the mast of the uninjured Battleship on the clipper's wounded port side. Glancing over, I felt my eyes spring wide as I stared at the ship we were trying to save. The Battleships had managed to fire – it was sporting two decently sized holes in its flank. A scowl marked my lips as I wrenched the wheel of my commandeered vessel and plowed it solidly into the Battleship I'd just crippled.

Jumping from one vessel to the next, I turned in midair with my keyblade splayed out, whirling into a slashing tornado of destruction that ripped through metal, wood and Heartless all at once. My arm snapped back as Ultima Weapon snagged on the fabric of the Battleship's sail. Grimacing I wrenched the weapon free even as I leapt from the intermeshed ships while they plunged as one into the waters, their captains dead and their very forms disintegrating.

The third ship, pointed now towards the clipper's aft end and firing with its port cannon, put another hole into the wounded vessel's side. I roared as I charged towards it.

Lightning burst from the sky moments later, blasting the mast of the Battleship into pieces and spraying me with the shrapnel.

A sharp cry burst from my lungs as I shielded my face, my momentum changed by the force of the air-displacing blast. I was hurled backwards right into a huge rising wave.

I sputtered as I forced my head to erupt from the watery surface. My hair, now drenched completely after being wind-buffeted forever, hung in gangly strands in my face, only part of its bulk defying gravity as was usual. I wiped salty water from my face.

Seconds later I was struggling under the water, my pants having been firmly grabbed and my body dragged under the waves' surface. Kicking violently, I felt my stomach turn as my foot connected with something very, very pointy.

I'd just plunged my shoe onto a trident.

Flailing with my arms as wildly as I could, I pushed my frame onto the surface of the water and took a wild gasp of air as I managed to break free of the water's confines.

"Sora!" I heard over my panting breath. Donald was right above me, shaking slivers of wood from his staff and looking at me with concern in his huge eyes.

"Donald! Screwdivers!" I gasped even as I began to kick again, feeling their slimy hands reaching for me.

"And Air Pirates!" I heard Goofy shout from above, his voice distorted by distance. "Got those last Battleships, though!"

"Get the guys in the air!" I gasped out. "Donald, a little help?"

Thankfully the duck instantly understood. I was surrounded with blue magical energy as he hefted Save The Queen above his head and squawked out a vicious ducky scream, the staff in his feathered hand vibrating harshly as bursts of mystic light blasted forth from it. Seconds later I was dragged once again under the surface of the water.

The Screwdivers were clearly visible as I opened my eyes in the murky water. Three were surrounding me, one apparently confused as its grip on me had just changed. I could barely see four more lurking in the shadowy distance. The glimmer of something metal could be seen a little further off.

Ultima Weapon still in hand, I turned my body sharply so I was facing the ocean floor and gave my magically-crafted fin a sudden kick, startling the wits ouf of the Heartless that had been trying to drown me seconds ago. As the water slid over my bare upper body and my scaly lower portions, a grin crossed my lips and I turned, grabbed my keyblade in both hands and charged right back at them.

Two jutted swiftly out of the way, their tridents clutched close to their chests. The one who'd dragged me under the water's surface stared with confusion evident in its golden eyes.

It burst into inky blackness seconds later, its coloration still staining Ultima Weapon as I burst free of the water's surface for a few moments. Spinning in the air, I turned with a laugh and plunged right back in, kicking sharply as I felt my tail become covered with water once again to give an even greater burst of speed that what I'd already attained and give chase to those Screwdivers that were running.

I was walloped solidly on the top of my head.

Blinking dizzily as I slowly righted myself, I stared at the Air Pirate that was floating just a few feet away from me, shaking its own head and queasily trying to locate the way back to open air. It died in a messy splatter of inky black seconds later, its stolen heart spinning through the water before vanishing in a little puff of black.

Glancing up at the surface of the ocean, I watched as Goofy's shield flew wildly towards a huge pack of the purple-winged foes above. My tail kicked sharply, driving me once again to the open air in a dramatic leap.

I slashed wildly with Ultima Weapon, those few moments I was free of the confines of the water being put to marvelous use as my arms quivered sharply, every connection with our foes taking its toll on my worn frame. I was verily surrounded with a black cloud of Heartless remains, soft pink glowing all around as their freed hearts spiraled into the air even as I plunged back into the waves.

Leaving the remainder of the battle above to Goofy and Donald, glancing up once to verify that they were doing fine, I swam away from the bright flashes of Firaga spells and the spinning light of Save The King and towards those foes I'd been facing earlier. I spotted the swarm of Heartless with their tridents swimming rapidly towards a great disturbance in the water.

My eyes bulged as I recognized what I was looking at. The frothy water was that liquid which was being pounded by the bobbing clipper ship above. The solid, barnacle covered wood slid as well as it could through the rough seas, visible for mere moments before waves raised it away and seconds later allowed it to plow heavily back into the ocean.

The Heartless were racing towards it those seconds after its harsh crashes, beating on the worn wood planks with their tridents' sharp tips. They were successfully punching hole after hole into the vessel.

I bit my bottom lip as I clenched my weapon.

It was then that I realized that there had to be some strong-hearted individuals onboard that vessel if the Heartless were so relentlessly attacking. Or….

I almost cried out as I noticed the keyblade glowing softly in the murky water.

That ship…!

Swimming swiftly away, I raced as quickly as I could for some distance then drove towards the surface. Getting my head above the roiling sea's foam, I stared even as I brought the keyblade up.

Sure enough, a small glimmering golden light shined from right above the crow's nest on that sailing vessel. Barely visible to my eye, I spotted a tiny keyhole formed upon a silvery shield hung there, the ship's identifier that shined proudly below that station its nation's flag would wave were the weather any less rough.

My heart sank as I watched the sailors onboard the majestic clipper, oblivious to the fact that their ship's mast was housing this world's keyhole, struggle vainly with the wheel and look desperately towards the shore. They didn't realize the danger they were in, likely attributing the sharp cracks of noise they'd heard earlier and the fact that they were taking on water at an astonishing rate as running across the jagged rocks that lined the coastline of Passamaquoddy.

Diving below the water, I raced back towards that clipper, keyblade firmly gripped. Those Screwdivers had to go!

I plunged right into the small mass of them, scattering all six that had congregated to attempt to sink the vessel. Two fell as I swiftly swung Ultima Weapon, its sharp edge slicing as effectively through the water as it did through air. The soft red glow of hearts lit the bottom of the clipper even as it pressed down for me.

Swimming down, I reoriented myself then located my quarry. A cry flew from my lips. "This is it!" I shouted as I raced towards them.

As I tore towards them, noting the continuing upgrading slope of the ocean's floor as we all headed inland, I struggled in the roiling water. As it got shallower, it got rougher. My only consolation was that the Heartless were having as many problems with the waves as I was.

The waves rose sharply and dipped murderously towards the jagged landscape I was swimming through. Regardless of the danger I kept my eye firmly on the Screwdivers that were leading me away from the ship.

A sharp flick of my tail sent me bursting from the side of one wave and plunging into the next, only to barrel through that crest in the blink of an eye and careen into open air once more. Another stinging reentry into water as I sailed into yet another wave put me right on par with them.

The violent waves plunged up and down, the treacherous waters making our battle strange and disjointed. One moment I was being approached by rapid and graceful Screwdivers with their tridents bearing towards my soft belly – the next they were floundering uselessly as the propellers on the backs of their fish-shaped heads were exposed to the open air and their feet were kicking to keep them moving forward, their tridents held aloft as I was shaking my hair free of water droplets. Ultima Weapon slashed through water and air in the same swipe.

Seconds later, the Screwdivers were attempting to desperately swim away. I blinked at their panic then glanced up.

I joined them in their desperate struggle to escape.

A violent kick of my dolphin tail sent me plunging to the ocean's bottom, my back connecting solidly with the sharp rocks that made up the seabed. As milky red flowed through the water while my blood oozed from my body, I stared with huge eyes as the ship's keel plowed through the water, slamming down as the vessel dove from the crest of the huge wave it had been riding on into the trough between giant swells. I swear I almost felt the wood brush against my hair before the next wave's sweeping wall carried the ship away.

I was quite thankful that I was fully immersed in water and not wearing any pants as the clipper's rudder sliced through the seabed mere inches from my right arm, Ultima Weapon being ripped solidly from my hand as it caught in the gnarled wood.

Swimming away with a sharp flick of my tail as soon as I had a bit of clearance, I huffed and puffed desperately as I watched the vessel be tossed from wave to wave towards the continuing danger of the jagged coastline. Gulping, I swam towards the surface.

I was bowled over by a Screwdiver that was desperately trying to catch up with the ship.

Spinning in the water, I cried out then righted myself with a few strong waves of my tail. Forming Ultima Weapon, I snarled and jabbed its point straight through my foe.

I swept the ocean with my eyes. Not spotting any more Screwdivers, I smiled and began to swim towards the troubled clipper.

Seconds later I was sent back to the sea floor, my forward momentum halted by a huge fin being slammed on top of my body. Groggily lifting my head, I stared in horror.

The Heartless was enormous!

Stretching nearly the full length of the clipper we were trying to rescue, its long, sinewy body twisted through the water like a graceful snake. Blue scales glistened in even the dark murk of the ocean. The light green coloration of those scales along its belly defined its top from its bottom nicely. Huge golden fins, shaped rather like jagged wings, flew from its sides about one-third of the body's length from the head, those wing-like fins having at their wrists' bends sharp sea-blue colored clawed hands that clenched tightly. A giant gold rudder-like tail, angled parallel to the ocean's floor as a dolphin's fin is rather than perpendicular as is the fin of a shark, drove it through the water with powerful swoops, light filaments sweeping from the fin itself in graceful golden tendrils. A draconic head snapped at the water, huge yellow eyes glaring hatefully at the clipper as it swam, its giant fanged maw barely open. Water issued from its six gills on either side of its long serpentine neck, those gills marked by sweeping tendrils of gold themselves. A soft golden frill ran from its pointed nose to the finned tail.

If it weren't for its murderous intent and the giant Heartless insignia that verily glowed by its contrasting black and red upon the sea-green chest of the creature, I'd almost say it was pretty.

Gulping nervously, I swam towards the surface of the water to judge the distance between the swiftly swimming Heartless and the clipper.

I stared with wide eyes as the clipper barreled towards the jagged rocks of the Passamaquoddy coast.

Moments later, as a glimmering golden light appeared to hover in the sky, the ship veered sharply away from those terribly sharp rocks.

The lighthouse!

Breathing a sigh of relief as one danger was passed, I swam with dire intent towards the soft golden glimmer I'd seen skimming along underneath the roiling water's surface. Jumping from wave to wave, carefully avoiding the jutting rocks that lined my path, I shouted for Donald and Goofy.

Moments later they were flying above me as I swiftly swam with powerful strokes of my tail along the water's surface.

"We got 'em!" Goofy happily proclaimed, flying effortlessly above me with Save The King gripped solidly in his hands.

"Not quite yet," I grimply gasped as I swam. "Look! There!"

A voice whimpered from one of Donald's pockets. "Oh my! That must be the Leviathan!"

The duck quacked as he opened his pocket and stared into it. "What was that, Jiminy?"

"The Leviathan! A Heartless known for destroying ships throughout all of the ages! It's a beast of a serpent, almost as bad as that whale of a whale Monstro! It's likely the only Heartless that could put Monstro in for a run for his money!"

"That ship's still in danger, guys. Let's go!" I urged on even as I plunged deeper into the water to give my tail a more steady covering of water to work against. Swimming for all I was worth, swimming for the lives of those sailors aboard the clipper, I felt as if my lungs were going to burst and my heart was going to give out at any moment. Still I refused to slow down. That ship was in grave danger!

Brandishing Ultima Weapon, I swam alongside of the giant Leviathan, racing up the length of its body and sweeping underneath its right wing. A few more rapid pumps of my tail set me beside its head, staring at a yellow eye nearly as long as I am tall.

I gulped, hesitatnt for only a moment, before I snarled and barreled towards the draconic face with my keyblade.

It clanged solidly against hard scales.

The huge yellow eye blinked before turning its attention on me rather than on the clipper. The giant maw spread open, baring its fangs for the world as it let an earth-shattering roar burst from its gullet.

I cringed as my entire watery world rattled, my head shaken considerably by the power behind that roar. My ears rang uncontrollably even as I blindly swung my weapon.

Ultima Weapon bit into the Heartless' soft tongue even as it was in the process of snapping down on me.

With a screech of rage, it jerked its head back, glared, and lunged at me again, swerving slightly to its side. I blinked, watching the head travel away from me.

I realized what it was doing when its claws clamped down solidly on me.

Struggling in vain, I tried to lift my keyblade. Unfortunately the clawed hand held my arms pinned solidly to my side. "Donald! Goofy!" I screamed in desperation.

I shuddered as the cold night air suddenly connected with my skin. The Leviathan had burst from the ocean's surface, leaping towards the heavens. I heard a startled, pained quack followed by a strangled cry of 'Ahhoi-oi-oi-oi!'

Looking over, I whimpered as I noted that Donald was in my exact predicament, captured by the beast's left hand. Goofy had been tail-slapped form the air and was bouncing across the waves, screaming his rather unique vocalization.

We plunged as one back into the water, bubbles filling my nostrils and distorting my view. The waves rose, sending us heavenward once more, then dropped away to let the giant Heartless plunge back into the water. We were swiftly approaching the ship.

I screamed in frustration.

The Leviathan suddenly cried out, its grip loosened on Donald and me.

As quickly as I could, I swam away from the Heartless. Then I turned to check on the duck.

Donald had taken to the air, his happy thought firmly in place and the pixie dust sprinkled on him by Tinkerbell working overtime. Lifting his staff to the air, he snarled and squawked his ducky war-cry, shards of ice forming in midair and racing to the waterborne Heartless' head.

Turning to the target of the Blizzaga spell, I stared.

Elliott was wrestling the massive Leviathan in midair!

As lopsided and unfair as the battle seemed with the Heartless being nearly ten times the dragon's size, Elliott seemed to be holding his own. With a mighty huff, he blasted the Leviathan's face with fire, eliciting a pained roar and squirming shudder from the monster.

Lifting my keyblade, I added Thundaga to the mix until my magic ran out. Even as I drenched myself with an Ether, Goofy's shield flew from the night and collided with the Leviathan's head.

Drummed relentlessly by our combined attacks, the beast's roars slowly oozed into whimpers then into nonexistence. Fading into sparkling droplets of water rimmed with black, the Heartless faded from reality, its giant heart shining upon the waves for a few seconds before dissipating.

Exhausted, bruised and beaten beyond compare, I relaxed on the water's surface and allowed its waves to toss me onto the shore.

Even as I felt my sopping wet clothing reform on my body and my soaked shoes scrunch against the beach, my face connected with the sand and I knew no more.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies: 

Dark Mog: Neh heh heh. To start, McCoy's man boobs. Very scary indeed. But you made me picture them first, so I had to return the favor. :) And now on to the review proper, thank you so much for your commentary on the pace that Cloud and Leon have been moving at. I've had some people at work going, "What, you mean you've already hit double-digits and they're not banging each other yet? What the heck is wrong with you?" It's nice to know from another FF fan that this is going well, and that the pace is realistic rather than just fan service. As for my Heartless, well… trying to get into the heads of the little bobbling Shadows is rather fun. And I'm glad you're enjoying him! He's actually my favorite character of all of them. Thanks for the luck (only a few things broke underway, and only two of them while I was standing watch – I almost got a whole 4 hours of sleep every night, so it was a good underway; only one 51 hour-without-sleep period, thank goodness!) and hope you enjoy the new chapters!

polynesia: 'Hugs for Heartless' is a great campaign. (laughs) Glad you've enjoyed so far! Soooo, another Taurus type here, eh? I turn another year older on the 7th of May. Lucky me. Already hearing crap about it in my work center, too. (sniffle) Oh, the pain of being the oldest not-Chief in a place. Crappy-poo. Just because I went to college and then worked in the civilian sector before being a military moron. (hangs head and grumbles) And didn't like NGE, eh? Well, guess it's not for everyone, neh:) Anyway, new chapters! (bounda bounda) Thanks for the reviews that helped encourage me to keep writing this story!

Shadow Cat17: Well, guess it was kinda obvious. (grin) Glad you're reading and liking the story! And certainly hope the wait was worth it. Or that these chapters are halfway decent. (self-conscious rubbing of the back of the head)

Li the Twilight Knight: Well, Squally and Cloud just fit so damned well. Especially considering that they appear together in almost every cut scene that involves Cloud (or are within, like, 15 feet of one another at all freaking times) throughout all of KH2. Huzzah for blatant yaoi-stick waggling! I heart it! And as for your plushie… (tosses over a virtual plushie in thanks for the review. As he smacks the monitor, he snarks out "My strength returns!") If only I could make a voice box. The sewing wouldn't be so hard once I find the proper materials. (evil grin) Some day I'll have a real plushie all of my own to sit on my bed and look evil. Neh heh heh.

andromeda90: Thank you much for the review! Yeah, couldn't leave Leon hanging for ten-million years in la-la land. He had to come back. :P Hope you like the newest chapters!

bEACHAN: Thank you very much for the compliments on my little story! Heck, this isn't many reviews? (owlish blinking) It's getting reviewed almost every chapter, and that in of itself is more than enough to keep me happy and writing. I can't begin to think to be one of those people that holds out for hundreds of reviews or a mandated 10 per chapter or what not. I'm not greedy – I'll get what I can. :) But as per Sora realizing who his true love is… well, that's a bit of a dilemma, neh? We'll see how it washes out. :P Riku is freaking beautiful in KH2. (takes a moment to lividly curse the –content censored for virgin eyes- Hades Paradox Cup tournament level FREAKING 48 that hands her her butt in a basket! AGAIN!) But again, thanks so much! Reviews as complimentary as yours make me feel all gooey and happy inside.

DarkStarPhoenix: (dances off her boat and away from her car after a refreshing drive on dry land) Back in the ol' USA again! Yippee! So, had fun at camp, eh? Very cool! Yeah, hanging with other people having intellectual equality is quite a treat. Yet another reason my rate in the Navy is looked upon as snobbish – we believe the same thing, so most of the nuclear operators refuse to coerce with people outside of our departments. Be patient, dear one – KH2 is very, very worth the wait. Except for the damned Hades Paradox Cup. That thing just needs to die. Mainly because I suck, but hey! It's hard! (cries) Damn me for being a perfectionist and putting off finishing the game until I finish every last side quest and every mini game to complete the journals. Damn me. Anyway, your questions concerning ol' Squally and his reactions will be answered up soon. Very, very soon. Though I haven't gotten around to doing a chapter from his POV for awhile… that might have to come up pretty darned soon!

littlekittykat: Awww… (hands over an ice pack) Please no fainting. The updates will be swift for only a few more chapters, then they'll screech to a bit of a halt again, alright:)

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Like it? Hate it? Submit as the plushie… the plushie. Where the hell's the plushie? (snarls and starts tearing the house apart before remembering that he was left in her work center via email sent to herself to show her interested coworkers) Aw crappy. Submit a review anyway, if you like… please? (sad pout face x 10000) 


	20. Communicating

Just a moment to sigh a breath of relief – I finally beat the damned Hades Cup tournament in KH2. And a moment to scream in sheer terror and frustration – I will NEVER, EVER again do the level 49 battle. Yuffie was easy to topple. Tifa was a little challenging with her continual 'Final Heaven' in the back of my skull, but she went down quick. But Cloud and Leon? Cloud with his 'I'm going to zip everywhere in the freaking arena and get you at your low point in your glide' fighting? Leon with his 'forget zipping around, I'm just going to smash you out of the freaking air like a gnat with my giant damned gunblade and then roast your face off with a fire spell, then get (no shit) three times as aggressive when you smack down my bitch (Cloud) and leave me as the last person standing, so I'm going to _chase your lousy butt around the arena and beat you out of the damned air every 15 seconds_' bastardized tactics? And having all four of those lousy idiots in the arena at the same time, with NO Donald and NO Goofy and NO drives and NO summons? Sora's single-man Trinity Limit's cool, but…. Thank God Hades was easy to smack down, considering I blew through my Elixers in my L1 menu while getting bitch-slapped every few seconds by the neon gunblade from Hell. ARGH. NEVER. AGAIN.

But all I have to do is get three more Twilight Gems and I'm done with the Jiminy Journal. Huzzah! (happy dance) Oh. Fic. Right!

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 20  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Communicating

I yawned loudly as I shuffled into the kitchen.

It had been a long, fulfilling, satisfying sleep with zero interruptions. I felt refreshed for the first time in days. Of course, though, that had been the first real rest I'd had since the incident. With Leon's eyes open and his gruff attitude solidly in place, everything seemed right in the world again.

I'd rejoiced when he'd stared at the ceiling in confusion, his small groan of exhaustion drawing my attention from the little Heartless that Aerith was cuddling to her bosom and directing it instead to him. My hand had tightened considerably on his, drawing his focus from the plain white pane above him to my face, his hazed blue-gray eyes barely maintaining cognizant awareness of what he was seeing. I smiled as I hadn't smiled in ages – as I hadn't smiled since Tifa gave me confidence in the fact that no matter how it was that I'd been created, whether creation of Jenova's cells driven by Tifa's memories of a boy in her town or actual child born to a woman in Nibelheim who strove and failed to attain a position in SOLDIER – and nearly let the tears that stung the backsides of my Mako eyes leak onto my cheeks.

Then he blinked, snorted quietly, and huffed in a scratchy, graveley voice, "Why so panicked?"

All the happiness instantly went away and I wanted to punch his face in.

"Because you were unconscious, you idiot," I'd immediately snapped even as Aerith and Tifa smiled faintly, Yuffie guffawed at Leon's abrupt lack of conscious awareness to our positions, and Cid and Barret both snarled and started cursing him colorfully. "You had us all scared."

He'd closed his eyes and turned his face away with a snort. "How ridiculous."

Then I did punch him.

And then I was dragged out of the room by the combined might of Tifa and Yuffie.

They'd dragged me to my bedroom and forcibly tossed me in. Yuffie had left immediately afterwards, no doubt returning to check on 'her Squall' and ensure he was still with us. Tifa, however, had remained with me and shook her head in laughable dismay.

Forcing me into my bed, she had just smiled gently even as she shoved me back with that manic strength of hers and started to tuck me in. "Now just why did you do that, Cloud?" she'd questioned, one dark brow quirked above a playful eye. "He just regained consciousness. A solid punch to his jaw is probably the last thing he needed."

"He's an asshole," I'd snarled quietly. "He has no regard for anyone but himself."

"He's Leon," she'd retorted. "Did you expect him to react any differently?"

"Maybe show a little gratitude," I'd huffed.

"Come on," Tifa had said with a small shake of her head. "You know how he is. You know how he was before you arrived from listening to Cid and Yuffie and Aerith talk about him. With as little as he thinks of himself, do you actually expect him to believe that every person in this place was worried about him? It's not having regard for no one save himself, Cloud. It's having so little regard for his worth that he doesn't understand the effect he has on his companions."

I'd closed my eyes and sighed quietly. My mind had been forced to admit that Tifa was likely right in her assumptions. "How… pathetic," I'd groggily muttered as the sleep I'd been denying since my fight with Sephiroth's summoned clone started overtaking me.

"Indeed. Maybe he needs someone to show him how much he really means to us all, neh?" she had quietly said, her dainty hand lightly brushing over my cheek.

Those words dancing in my mind, I had fallen completely asleep, drifting right through dinner, an entire day's worth of meals and waking only once the scent of the next day's breakfast started to flood Hollow Bastion. With my stomach as empty and angry at me as it was, I'd made marvelously quick time with my razor in the bathroom to rid my face of the scratchy pale stubble that had assaulted my chin before stumbling out into the hallways and trudging to the location of that delicious smell.

I scratched myself as I dragged my tired carcass over to the kitchen counter to stare at the filled coffee pot. The coffee that was dribbling into the clear glass vessel was as black as midnight. A Leon favorite that no one else could ever stand. Apparently someone was pampering him that morning.

With a resolute sigh I meandered to the cabinet that held all of the coffee mugs we'd managed to locate in Hollow Bastion. Selecting the largest one I could find (so what if it was a Sanrio cup? I kind of like Chi Chai Monchan – and it's _not_ because I can relate with a monkey, despite what Leon says) I looked around the kitchen, sniffing the luscious scent of fresh bacon and eggs sizzling on the stove that was barely stained by the strong smell of cigarette smoke.

"Morning, Cid," I muttered as I lifted the pot from its pad and poured a full mug of the patented 'Brew of Death.' "Smells good."

"Mornin', Cloud," he gruffly rumbled back, his newly lit cigarette pinched between his teeth as he stirred up his eggs with his spatula. "It's 'bout time you dragged your sorry ass back outta bed. Was tempted to send that little Heartless into your room and see if ya'd died."

I snorted and shook my head. "Just caught up on sleep."

"Figured as much. After all, after we'd checked up on you, we couldn't bring ourselves to wake our li'l sleepin' beauty."

"Yeah, yeah," I halfheartedly grumped as I slipped towards the table. Pulling a chair, I flopped lazily down into it and set my mug down on the wooden surface before me.

Moments later I heard Cid call out in greeting again. I glanced over my shoulder, one brow arched over a tired Mako eye, to see who'd entered and who'd gotten an almost cordial 'good morning' from the gruff pilot.

I felt my cheeks light up when my eyes set their gaze on Leon.

Fortunately there was no harsh anger in those stormy gray eyes for the rather prominent purple mark I'd granted his face with my fist that was now completely visible as he'd shaved the rather thick beard that had formed during his time of unconsciousness. There was only black recognition as he stared at me before he nodded his greeting.

Turning back to my mug, I hastily took a sip from it and almost choked on the coffee's bitter flavor. Coughing brightly I ignored the sound of the chair beside me scraping loudly against the floor tiles.

"Good morning," Leon softly said. When I looked over to stare at him, I found his gaze wasn't on me but rather on his own rather dignified royal blue ceramic mug filled with the horribly dark coffee that Cid had brewed up.

"Morning," I replied.

We both stared into our respective mugs as uncomfortable silence fell over us.

There was so much I wanted to say. So much I wanted to ask. I wanted to tell him how delighted I was that he was back with us, that we could share these quiet breakfasts together again. I wanted to enquire as to what it was that finally drew him back to us. I wanted to know how Sephiroth had appeared and what had been going on when the one-winged angel had descended. I wanted to understand why he'd growled what he'd said when he'd first awakened. I wanted to know what the hell was going through his head, what he was feeling in his heart. I wanted to see if Tifa's suspicions about his sense of self-worth were true, and what would ever drive a person to such degrading depths. I wanted to know….

Alright, so I wanted to know everything. I was finally realizing that I knew nothing of the enigma beside me.

All I knew was that he was a fighter equal to myself, that he wielded a weapon called a gunblade upon which was bestowed the name 'Lionheart,' that he really seemed to like his leather and that he had a really timid smile that spoke the tale of a broken man who'd been pushed much too far for a human being to endure in its strained depths. I knew that his eyes turned silver when he was exceptionally angry or ready to do battle to the death, that they turned the darkest blue imaginable when he was relaxed and happy (I'd only seen this in the hot tub during the tournaments), and that they were normally a hazed blue-gray that could shift from bland to murderously cold in a matter of nanoseconds.

Wow. Not all that much, considering that we've 'known' each other since the tournaments at Olympus Coliseum. And especially considering that we've 'lived' with one another since the keyhole at Hollow Bastion was locked by the Keyblade Master.

Of course, he knew everything and anything there was to know about me. I'd told him about my childhood. Tifa had filled him in on all of my failures. Aerith had spoken with him about Sephiroth. Yuffie had laughed at me in his presence about my lack of a love life. Barret had told him about my activities in AVALANCHE. Red had snorted about my journey to help save the Planet. Cid had indulged with him about my behavior onboard his airships. I don't think that there's a single aspect of my life my dear 'friends' haven't revealed to him. And of course, they were going to make everything as horrible and embarrassing as possible.

"Wow, you two are as good for conversation as that damned little shit of a Heartless," Cid's voice cleanly interrupted even as he slammed a full bowl of scrambled eggs on the table with a large serving spoon sticking out of it.

"Whatever," Leon bluntly replied, his voice quiet and bored as he served himself and began to stir his food, no doubt looking for errant cigarette ashes or a stray butt in the fluffy eggs.

Can't blame him. Bite into one of Cid's inadvertent surprises once, and a person gets really careful about one's meal.

"So, where is that thing?" I perkily asked.

"What, the Shadow? Ain't seen it since yesterday. Aerith was takin' it around. Seems really attached to her."

"Wonder why," I mused even as Cid flopped a plate filled with drippy, greasy, limp strands of bacon onto the table. My stomach gurgled happily as I threw strip after strip onto my own plate.

"Because she doesn't make it her goal to frighten him," Leon softly answered from his station beside me, reaching over my plate to grab a pair of bacon strips for himself before leaving me to ravish the remains.

"'Him'?" I observed.

"Yeah."

"Hey, you two, easy on the breakfast. The girls ain't gotten up yet. Freaking cretins."

"Sorry, Cid," we chimed in unison, my voice light and mocking, Leon's bland as ever.

"So anyway," I continued where we'd left off, picking up a fatty, drippy piece of bacon and stuffing it into my mouth. Chewing a few times and swallowing with glee, I focused my gaze on Leon. "You said 'him.' How'd you know that?"

"We've met," he answered quietly even as he spooned a helping of scrambled eggs into his mouth and chewed.

Cid soon met us at the table, a beer joining his plate of scrambled eggs and bacon to wash down his breakfast. "Met it, eh? How the hell'd that happen?" he gruffly joined.

"Probably when that Shadow plunged it's… eh, his hand into Leon's chest and grasped his heart," I observed.

Leon shrugged, apparently uncaring at the oddity of the situation. "I wouldn't know. All I know is that he appeared in the darkness I was traveling through and we spoke for awhile."

Cid snorted even as I held my head. "Come on, Leon," I urged.

"Just spoke about darkness and light. He helped set me back on track."

"And you're not going to elaborate?" I goaded.

He answered me by stuffing more eggs into his mouth.

"Figured as much," I grumped in dismay. It was hardly any small wonder why none of us seem to know anything about him. Antisocial prick.

Red XIII padded into the room moments later, his wolfish face lit with a bright grin as he trotted to a chair and jumped into it. Pushing his plate over with a massive paw towards Cid, he nodded. "If you please," he requested before turning his attention to us. "Cloud. Good to see you up. I was wondering how long you were going to remain oblivious to the world."

"Good morning to you too, Red," I muttered past my eggs as I swallowed. "So, what are you so chipper about this morning?"

"Aerith's little idea from yesterday worked."

"You don't say!" Cid exclaimed even as he finished dishing out Red XIII's breakfast and pushed the plate in front of him.

I blinked and looked at everyone with confusion evident in my eyes.

Leon looked at me, his hazed eyes clarifying into crystalline blue-gray orbs, their focus drilling into my own gaze. "Yesterday while you were asleep, Aerith decided she would experiment with ways to communicate with the Shadow. She was thinking charades, or perhaps writing or drawing."

I blinked a few times. "Why would anyone want to talk with it… him?"

"To find out his true intentions," Leon answered, his gaze softening slightly. "He's not here to do us harm. He's not here to have anything to do with us in particular, actually. He's searching for someone. We're trying to determine who."

"How do you know that?" I quietly asked.

His heavy stare drifted off of me, focusing instead on his cup.

"Please…?" I implored, my voice soft enough to strike his ears alone.

"Later," he replied with a shrug. "So, her plan to communicate with him worked?" he questioned, focus changed instantly to Red XIII.

"Him?" the beast curiously quipped, his singular golden eye widening slightly. "Eh, yes. Aerith's idea to have 'him' draw worked rather well. The sketches are rough, but apparently he understands."

"So we can ask 'im questions and he'll draw the answers? Be damned!" Cid huffed. "Well, guess the lack of lips kind explains why he didn't communicate normally, I guess."

"Actually," Red XIII interrupted, "he doesn't appear to understand our words. He just understands the drawings. He can't read, he can't write and he doesn't seem to understand gestures very well."

Cid looked crestfallen even as I felt my confusion become even more blatantly visible. "What a pain," I observed.

"He's no longer in full possession of his mind. Understandable," Leon observed, lifting his mug to take a long draught of his bitter coffee.

Red XIII looked curiously at Leon, his neck craning slightly towards the gunblader. "You know something we don't."

Leon calmly shrugged. "I might consider seeing what the Shadow's sketched up," he quietly stated.

Finishing our respective breakfasts, we rose and stretched even as Red XIII leapt from his chair and padded slowly out of the kitchen. Following him, we arrived after time in the library's second floor study. Aerith was already there, a nearly emptied glass of orange juice beside her and papers spread before her. Looking over at our small meandering gathering with her bright emerald eyes she smiled and waved.

"Mornin', girlie," Cid greeted as he trudged over to her, his large hands resting comfortably on his thickly wrapped waist and his cigarette clamped between his teeth, its smoke slowly billowing towards the ceiling. "What've you got there?"

"This is what we were working on yesterday. I'm trying to determine where the Shadow might be from," she confessed. "I must say, its drawing skills are a bit… rough."

I shrugged as I looked over her head at the drawings scattered across the desk, laying my hands lightly on her shoulders and giving them an appreciative squeeze. "Well, must be hard drawing with claws. After all, those hands can't really properly grip a pencil."

"You're right, of course," she said, laying one of her delicate hands lightly on my own and petting my calloused fingers soothingly.

I barely caught the flash of dark silver coloration in Leon's eyes before he turned his gaze away from Aerith and myself and turned his focus instead on the papers sprawled across the desk.

Did I image that?

Or did his eyes look… pained?

Swallowing slyly, I leaned over the seated woman and tried to stealthily garner a glance at the swordsman's face. A sigh of dismay nearly leaked from my lips as I noted that his expression was as stony and expressionless as usual while he let his dulled blue-gray eyes rove over the sprawling sketches.

A huff of disappointment managed to escape me as I straightened my stance, patting Aerith's shoulder before completely removing my hands and stepping to her side. Pressing my fingers to the desk, I sorted through the pages that lay before us all. "This one's really good. Hollow Bastion, right?"

"That's one I drew," Aerith stated.

"Trying to goad where the Shadows from by using an example, eh?" Cid puffed with a smoky breath. "I see Spiky there. Good representation. Looks just like a blonde unicorn-man," the old pilot chuckled.

Aerith flushed as she bowed her head. "I'm better at drawing architecture than people, thank you very much."

"So, what did it draw in response to that?" Leon interrupted, his voice hard and calculating.

As Aerith pointed, we all looked. I blinked a few times as I tried to make heads or tails of the doodle tht was splayed across a previously clean white piece of paper. "Looks like an island," I observed. "See? Ocean. And that's a beach. I think those are palm trees. Not really sure about that, though."

"And there're people. Shit, look at the size of that poor kid's feet," Cid sniggered as he gestured at the roughly drawn stick-figure with its humongous circles for feet and its spiky hair roughly pointing out in all directions. "Looks almost like Cloud here with its deformed head."

"Gee, thanks," I huffed.

Aerith calmly pointed from one figure to the next. "I think these might have been acquaintances. Perhaps friends," she said as she gestured to a stick figure with a yellow scribbled-on dress that ended right below the split of its little stick legs with hair that made its head look like a rounded letter 'w,' a stick figure with blonde strands hanging down and shorts that featured decidedly mismatched legs, and a stick figure with a red spike sticking straight off of its head and a big ball shoved under one stick arm. Dragging her finger over to two more stick figures that were drawn slightly off to the side, she nodded. "Another girl, with short red hair. You can tell the gender by the fact that the Shadow drew it with a skirt. And a boy with giant yellow shoes and spiky brown hair."

Leon and I met one another's gazes. I could tell we were both processing the same thought.

Glancing back at the picture, I pointed to the small outcrop of rock that jutted out of the poorly illustrated ocean. "That looks like a sideways tree with someone standing on it." I looked at the small silver-haired stick figure in its puffy blue pants and yellow scribbled shirt. "I wonder."

A startled yelp almost escaped my lips as a black claw suddenly pressed its way into my view, pointing directly at the stick figure I'd been intently staring at. Calming my racing heart, I glowered down at the little Shadow that'd made its way unannounced to our location.

"That's him," Leon quietly said. "The drawing on the side island is the Shadow."

Leon ignored our questioning stares and instead stepped over to the Shadow's side, his presence uncomfortably close to mine. I shuddered slightly as I felt his hip press against mine. He ignored the rather intimate contact and instead focused on the Heartless that had slithered its way to the table by ducking between my legs. Picking up the drawing of the island, he turned it over.

We all stared as it had another picture on its reverse.

"It finished with the island portrait, then drew that," Aerith quietly stated. "I believe it's confused as to who it really is, or where it's really from."

We all looked at the fairly detailed representation of a room lined with books and hastily scribbled charts, a stick figure with silver hair and a white coat standing by a desk where another stick figure, this one with platinum blonde locks and thick robes, was stationed. A hole in the wall – apparently somewhere that a door belonged – showed a silver area with a block drawn in it and a grid sketched below that block. A large red circle was sketched above that block. A computer, perhaps?

"Still, the person seems to remain a constant even if his opinion of his origin is confused," Leon said, shuffling through the sprawled papers until he found a sheet that was blank. Lifting one of Aerith's colorful pencils from before her, he placed the paper flat before the Heartless and began to draw.

We all blinked as he drew a simple square with a stick jutting through its center and erupting from one side. "Is that a sword of some sort? Something with a fully enclosed hilt?" I questioned.

"Something like that," Leon said. "I'm testing a hypothesis."

"And what might that be?" Red XIII questioned, looking along the length of his muzzle to Leon's stony face.

"That I might know exactly who this Shadow's looking for."

We all watched, curiosity dripping in the air, as he added a crown-shaped block to the end of the stick opposite the square he'd initially drawn. The Keyblade.

Instantly the shadow picked up a black colored pencil and began to draw, not waiting for Leon to remove his own hand. A stick figure was quickly doodled into place, large shoes and spiky hair present – the same stick figure from the island picture. A quick scribble added an aura of darkness to the sketch. Next to be drawn was a rough representation of a Shadow Heartless beside that stick person.

And finally, small lines surrounded the rough drawing of the Keyblade's holder.

The Shadow had drawn Sora as a dark representation of light.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Review replies: 

polynesia: Alrighty. What I exactly do for a living; I'm in the Navy, and I run the nuclear reactor onboard my aircraft carrier. The reactor's what we use to make steam for launching the planes off the top deck (the catapults), cooking, hot water, laundry, etc. We also are the department of the ship that distills seawater into drinking water, runs the electrical distribution boards, and moves the ship through the water. Yeah. I run the silly thing. That's my job. It's very technical and at times very, very boring. But it's work, and I can't complain about the very steady paycheck. :) And on to the review properly! Thanks for the compliment about the battle scene. I like action scenes, personally. I was always a bit of a tomboy as a girl instead of a frilly princess, so I was into everything that explodes and 'looks cool.' And so when I write, I just try and get the visuals in my head to splay visibly across the page. I'm glad it came off successfully! And as for spoiling you… eh heh heh. I'm actually glad that I am. Thanks for considering my stuff quality! (humble prostration)

Dark Mog: First off, thanks so much for the word edit! Already went and corrected it. And yes, I'm thoroughly embarrassed that I made a mistake like that. Sheesh. Glad the water fight came off well – didn't mean to be too creepy, but… well, it couldn't be helped! I had already planned for that battle. Anything up in the future though is simply because I'm a sadist. :) Just kidding, of course. And, well, slow get-together fics are more my style and my cup of tea, so expect it. In fact (takes a moment to glower at the two characters) they're very, very stubborn in my head because they're attempting strongly to be based off of their original Final Fantasy and their Kingdom Hearts selves. They're fighting every step of the way to keep it slow and simple. I've learned through years of writing to just let the characters have their way instead of trying to butcher their personalities for the sake of throwing them in the sack together (even though sometimes that's an attractive package). On another completely different tangent, yay smut! There may be some 'optional' chapters springing up on my website if I can get myself to get around to updating that someday. I'll post in the story proper and on my profile page when they appear. I've had kooky thoughts running amuck in my skull as of late that want to weasel into this story. Man Boobs (random shout-out because I can).

Li the Twilight Knight: Thanks for the welcomes! Heh. The stuff that got me into yaoi? Watching Gundam Wing and having my eyeballs bleed with all the hand grabbing. Then I got into that fandom and laughed my ass off. But I must say I'm more of an FF8 yaoi fan than a FF7 girl – but as I've stated before, I'm a Squally-whore. Mmmm, leather. Thanks for the idea about the voice box – you're going to make me actually sit down with a needle and sew, aren't you:P

littlekittykat: Thank you SO much for that bit of reassurance! I always feel kind of iffy about not-in-game characters/monsters and if they come off clearly. I'm very happy to hear that Leviathan came off well! I rather like it. And I don't know what gender it is. (laughs) BTW, shout out to any artists – can someone doodle that? My ink skills suck. I just color on the computer. My buddy does the art. Feh.

DarkStarPhoenix: I'm game for anything you want to email me. :) Poetry isn't really my cup of tea, but I still read it happily! It's just the length – so much is so danged short! And some of it's so vague, too. Feh. But I'm a simple-minded person in some aspects. XD Thank you very much for the compliment about my writing style! Visual imagery is the way I learn, the way I express, and what I appreciate the most. I'm glad it got noticed and it's appreciated! It takes a bit of work I'll admit, but the effort I think is well worth it. BTW, read and reviewed your poem. :) Good darned thing you put the spoiler tag up there. And thanks for the poem you wrote! The plushie from hell's dancing in glee because he has a fan base now. Hope this update came quickly enough for you:P

Shadow Cat17: Awww, thank you! I'm getting people to squeal and clap? Coolness! Hope this was a quick enough turn-around time for an update. :)

* * *

Suggestions? Compliments? Complaints? Bring it on! (clears her throat and grabs a recent review) 

Come unto my Ansem plushie,  
You know that you want to.  
He's telling you to submit to him,  
He wants you to review!

Many thanks to DarkStarPhoenix! (glares at the plushie that smiles his goofy, cocky smirk) Yes, you have a fan club. Damn little twerp.


	21. Decision

YEE HA! Yaoi-rific! (dances away with the 100 percent completion of KH2) Oh, and just because I can, I'm tying KH1, KH2 and KH:CoM all together. But this still takes place between KH1 and KH:CoM, nowhere near KH2. Nyeah ha ha! I freaking swear, after watching that ending, Sora/Riku is more canonistic than Sora/Kairi. (huggles her plushie with glee) Alright, I'll shut up and get to the story now. Eh heh heh. (sheepish grin)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. Expect plenty of foul language in this chapter – it's to be expected, given who's POV it's from and that I'm not about to destroy this lovable guy's habits like Disney did (damn you again, Disney!). And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 21  
The Gummi Expert – Decision

Well, ever since the day Aerith managed to break through to that little Shadow, Hollow Bastion had been in one hell of an uproar. Every damned person that inhabited the place was running around like a chicken with his or hear head cut cleanly from his or her shoulders.

'Course, it can be expected.

It's not every day that a guy finds out that the little Shadow Heartless that's been peacefully living among all you is seeking the Keyblade Master.

Now that's not to say that such a thing's all that rare. Seems every Heartless out there wants to get their hands on that kid owing to the Keyblade he runs around with. Something probably to do with the fact that a guy's got to have one hell of a big and pure heart to summon that thing, and big and pure hearts are delicacies those Heartless critters just can't seem to resist. Also the fact that it's the biggest damned threat to them ever kinda seems to drive them, too.

What was at question was what the little Shadow was intending to do with the brat when he found him.

See, some of these folks I'm thinking have some pretty bad suspicions about the little guy. 'Course, that's to be expected too. He's a damned Heartless. One of the fucknuts responsible for screwing over the entire universe, plucking worlds out of the sky one at a time and destroying hearts wherever they go. We've all seen the effects of the Heartless' raids with our own eyes.

Hell, was only nine years ago that we lost Hollow Bastion.

I still remember that, too. I'd been out in my garage tinkering with a rocket design. Shinra Company was blathering about funding a space project, and I was intent to be the lucky guy that got his ass blasted into the black vacuum above.

The huge complex that is now the whittled down remains we call Hollow Bastion used to be so damned nice. A beautiful center to our world, so to say. Right over the ocean, a good hop away from the polluted mess that's Midgar, sitting right on a spring of the Lifestream and radiant as all hell. Had a few small villages 'round it, too. Nice people there. Good people.

What was on the other side of that castle, I never did find out. A guy always ran out of fuel before getting that far, and refueling around Hollow Bastion's castle was an expensive endeavor, to say the very least. Cost a man an arm and a leg just to get back home, much less think 'bout exploring those huge looming continents that could be seen far off in the horizon. But I always had my suspicions 'bout what could be over there.

That place, this place we now sit in and live in for a lack of a better place to stay with Traverse Town being all upended with the eruption of worlds from darkness that come happened when the brat-boy with his Keyblade locked Kingdom Hearts up, used to be kind of a childhood home for a bunch of the kids that I have swarming the grounds with me now. I remember those days. Cloud was a wee squirt, a bit lacking in self-confidence, shy and jumpy as hell. Apparently he didn't get no love from his hometown, so his dear Ma brought him to the castle quite often for some playtime away from the bullies that harassed him. Must've cost her a pretty penny just to pamper that kid of hers. Still, nice gesture. And he'd always come with that little black-haired Tifa, too. The home of the Wutai wasn't too far off, so I saw the Pixi-Stik fairy girl Yuffie quite often too. So freaking cute when she was little! And Aerith, too. She was quiet and demure even when she was a tiny kid.

Gaw, I sound like some old fucking geezer rambling on about them like that.

Anyway, as said, good place. Good people. Had a few neighboring islands, too. One with this cute little orphanage with some of the most obnoxiously adorable hellish brats on it that anyone could imagine.

Always was able to recognize those gray eyes from the one time I saw that place and its inhabitants.

Never would tell a soul, though. I know that Leon would fucking kill me if I went revealing anything about his childhood to anyone without his permission.

Wasn't like that when he was little. He was actually kind of sweet. Must've had one fucked up life to turn him sour.

Anyway, used to go when they were all kids. Used to ferry them over myself, sometimes. Working with Shinra, having access to their airships, certainly does have some benefits from time to time.

Then one day it just up and out vanished.

I guess it's damned lucky that the kids had grown up a bit – they were all teenagers save that Yuffie girl who was barely seven, set in their ways and getting ready to strut their stuff on the adult world. Or so they thought. Heh. Bunch of snot-nosed idiots still, so far as I'm concerned. Think Cloud there was barely thirteen, himself. All thinking he was going to be a proper SOLDIER and everything. Moron.

But their childhood home vanished. No going back to Hollow Bastion ever again, even once they'd gotten old and wanted to reminisce like myself at times. Gone. All those people, all those primo vacation spots. Rumor was flying like crazy that old Ansem the Wise had fucked around with forces that were never meant to be touched by human hands and brought disaster on his castle and his subjects.

I'd wondered about the validity of that. Ansem was a pretty good guy, the few times we got to meet. Had one hell of a taste for that Sea Salt Ice Cream, he did, and always ordered some to be shipped whenever I made my wild Shinra-sponsored runs from Midgar. Just didn't seem quite like the kind of guy to knowingly screw over his people by playing with darkness.

I'd more or less suspect it was his damned apprentices – some of those bastards were just shady as hell – but I wisely kept my mouth shut. Seems I was a bit off anyway, seeing as how a few years later Ansem was running around with this big damned Heartless guarding him and smashing light wherever he went.

Kind of hard to forget your whole world fading away, though. Nine years ago it was Hollow Bastion. Seven years ago, when I was testing out my very first gummi ship that I'd made from the wacky colored pieces of shit that fell from the skies (don't know why I decided to call them gummies. Just looked kind of like that. Like something you'd buy in a big plastic bin and chomp on all weekend) and managed to discover an entirely different dimension of space, I'd come across a familiar stream of islands with a few memorable people. I'd seen that kid with his gray eyes again, all grown up this time and lacking all the innocence he used to have, and snatched his ass away from the billowing black that was consuming his world.

Don't think he's ever forgiven me for that, but tough shit. We couldn't have reached anyone else in time – he was standing on the only spot of light-graced land that still existed, after all. The girl he'd screamed for was long gone by the time I wrestled him completely into the ship.

I'd dumped him off in Traverse Town, a brand new burg I'd found while testing out my gummi ship that seemed to be a mish-mashed collection of chunks of destroyed worlds and lost people. Would've tried to find another place for the guy, but unfortunately I had other crap to finish up. After all, I was giving that obnoxious twerp Yuffie a run in my brand new gummi. Little shit was nine, so she was almost still cute enough to weasel her way into my inventions. Had to drop her back at her Grandpappy's place before he got pissed.

Always did want to go back to Traverse Town and check up on that boy who called himself Leon, but unfortunately by the time I'd managed to get some new parts for the gummi and some good fuel cells for it things went to utter shit. Meteor was cast, the Shinra SOLDIER General got his panties in fifteen different twists, sweet li'l Aerith got herself skewered on a nine-foot-long sword, Cloud went bat-shit crazy off the deep end and mentally broke before realizing that he's a fucking normal person like the rest of us (Jenova cells and Mako shit be damned, I say. He's still a useless bitch even if he's got super I'm-gonna-sit-on-the-ceiling-and-whine-'cause-I-can powers and a sword that's compensating for his lacking manhood), the Planet went abso-fuckin'-lutely haywire and Holy barely saved us all.

Yeah, a bit too busy being a part of that fiasco to go check up on that Leon kid. After all, I was the Great Cid, pilot of the _Highwind_, only way those fucking idiots who were trying to save the Planet could get anywhere. Plus without my trusty spear, they wouldn't have made it very far anyway. Heh.

Wasn't until darkness overtook Midgar one day that I really thought about him again. Kinda got lost in the transition from 'we're all gonna fuckin' die' to 'hey, it's another sunny day, make some pancakes wife.' That was a good year ago. Maybe a little more now.

Scariest damned thing I did ever see that morning, though. Woke up, reached over Shera's peacefully snoozing body to part the curtains, and saw nothing but black outside of the window. I was out of bed seconds later, running for the airship and telling the wife to stay put.

It was only once I was airborne and flying every fucking place on the Planet that I realized how grave things actually were. It was rather horrifying the way it brought back memories. Like when I'd tried to travel towards Hollow Bastion only to find it missing completely, those continents that hovered on the other side of the looming castle vanished from view too – like they never fucking existed at all, replaced by a never ending expanse of ocean that never was there before. Or like when I'd raced with that gummi over to that island, watching that huge white building with its multicolored halo being assaulted by the heartless and watching people get slaughtered left and right, before I watched the lone survivor of that onslaught race from that building's gullet with his odd sword in his hand, slashing his way to freedom.

I'd watched that world vanish once I pulled away with Leon safely in my ship, staring as it became just as Hollow Bastion had been – completely nonexistent, swallowed from the universe.

And I was seeing the same damned thing that day as I sailed my airship over the Planet's wounded surface.

Midgar was gone.

Cosmo Canyon was gone.

I found Cloud near the Forgotten Capitol fighting for his life against those same fucking critters I'd seen tearing apart people when I'd gone to pick up Leon. I tried to reach him but failed pretty miserably – he vanished in a puff of blue fire before he fell, his last scream a curse at his darkness for brining his misery to everyone around him. Egotistical brat, blaming himself and his problems for everything that's fucking going wrong. Typical. Still, did wish I could've gotten him. I remember tasting bile on my tongue when he was gone.

Yuffie had yet to vanish – the island she called home was fading away and swarmed over by those nasty little Shadows, but she was running for all she was worth. Made it to the airship just tin time, too. At least one person could be saved.

With Barret having been in Cosmo Canyon with Tifa and Red to check out some supposedly oil-rich lands, we took a moment to mourn their losses. And seeing as how Reeve Tuesti worked, lived and generally plain existed in Midgar (don't think he's ever seen the outside world except through the eyes of that damned annoying little robot cat of his), we kind of had to write him off too. And Vincent? Yeah, like we know where the vampire was holed up.

It was pretty damned inevitable. We were likely the only survivors. After all, Cosmo Canyon and Midgar were already wiped clean off the map. So was that fucking glacial hell we'd tromped through. Healin Lodge was toast. The Forgotten Capitol had been vanishing when I went to try and snatch the spiky moron from it. Yuffie's home was plundered and likely already gone.

Yuffie was crying when I told her that we were cutting our damned losses and running for all we were worth. I felt just what she was sobbing – that we should go back, that we should try and save our friends. My heart wanted that more than anything; my mind snarled that we'd just end up dying with them. Better someone live to remember than everyone die together, I'd told her before getting the airship back to Rocket Town.

My house was already gone by the time we'd gotten back. All that remained of the area I was calling home was the hangar where I was storing that interesting gummi of mine.

Numb from loss, hardly able to see straight past the throbbing in my skull caused by the realization that not only were all my friends and now my wife gone but that my Planet was perishing as well, I got myself and Yuffie off that doomed world as quickly as I could.

We'd made haste for Traverse Town.

Quite a turn of events – I'd dropped that Leon kid off and pitied the hell out of him for being a lost, homeless soul. Never thought I'd be in his same position.

It was when we were wandering those streets that Yuffie and me got the shock of our lives – we met Aerith of all people wandering outside of the Hotel. She'd smiled and greeted us prettily. When asked about how it could be that she just popped back to life, she yammered on forever and ever about the Planet sensing its fall into darkness, shitting her out of the Lifestream to carry on its essence of light, she's the Planet personified there to maintain its soul as its heart dwells in the darkness of the Heartless' grasp, yadda yadda yadda. Didn't make no lick of sense to me. Just know I was happy to have her back. Damned near brought tears to my eyes.

Didn't take too long after that for us to get settled either. Found Merlin was living in Traverse Town. That in of itself made me damned near cackle with glee – he was one of those nice folks that lived in Hollow Bastion before Ansem brought darkness falling over it. He and I always had a few good drinks and talked bullshit whenever I went over there, him yammering about his magic crap, me yammering about my computers and my airships. He'd managed to get his hands on one of the precious books of his collection before his village had been swallowed, too – that one held a world inside of it, filled with happy critters of innocence and purity and good-natured happiness. Quite a treasure for the Heartless, we both assumed, so we were happy he'd snagged it.

Holing up with Merlin for awhile, the three of us renegade survivors from the Planet had swiftly gotten used to Traverse Town life. I'd gotten in on partial ownership of a ship in what the people who'd been trapped in the burg for awhile called First District, sharing it with those bobble-headed moogle guys. Nice bunch, just kind of hard to take seriously with all their 'kupo'ing. Started making enough from selling shit to passers-by that we were able to permanently rent out the Red Room in the Hotel.

It was a normal night when I'd been ambushed.

See, been in Traverse Town for a couple of months without any incident. I didn't know that the place was plagued through its starlit days and nights by random appearances of Heartless.

Blasted little shits gave me nightmares whenever I remembered home. And they had the fucking audacity to follow us to Traverse Town. Bastards. Think that's why Yuffie and Aerith hate them so damned much – but oddly enough, save Leon, we were the only ones who weren't automatically suspicious of the little Heartless in our home.

Anyway, was meandering back to the Hotel. Picked up some canned soup and a loaf of bread for dinner for us all. Little buggers just popped out of nowhere when I passed from First District to Second District.

Didn't carry a weapon those days. Didn't think there was a need for it. So I was stuck with a fucking loaf of bread to beat Heartless away with.

Wasn't no problem, though. That Leon kid showed up and took care of them lickity-split. Turns out that wacky looking sword of his was good for more than just being a conversation piece.

Trying to find out what he'd been up to for the last damned near six years was like trying to pull teeth out of a chicken's beak. Fucking impossible. Seemed that whatever life he'd lead before the white building he'd fled been swallowed up compounded with the hurt put on him by the Heartless and whatever life he was having in Traverse Town made him about as personable as grass and able to emote as well as fungi. Still, took him in under my wing and hefted his sorry ass back to the Hotel to meet the girls.

Yuffie was crushing on him since day one (he ignored it). Aerith decided to be his friend since day one (he ignored that, too). I just decided that he'd be one handy addition to keep the Heartless at bay (he ignored me completely, but managed to be available whenever we were having trouble). Seemed that he was making his living demolishing the little Heartless bastards whenever they'd pop up, receiving rewards and gratitude from the thankful citizens.

No way for no one to live. Too fucking dangerous for such a good kid. Instead of leaving him to the life of a mercenary, I took him in completely. We rented out the Green Room also so there'd be no complications with having a strapping young man with those sweet, innocent girlies. Didn't want no problems, of course.

Then we'd met the Keyblade Master with his big clown shoes and Cloudesque head (poor fucker). Got Hollow Bastion back, too. Was certainly a wacky turn of events, but hey! Something's better than nothing. Unfortunately the Planet didn't appear quite then. Neither did Leon's home world. But the village he'd spent a lot of time in to the point that he called it a 'hometown of sorts' when he was a little one did reappear, and that seemed to be good enough for him.

Making the castle our home for the time being, we set about trying to rebuild what was left of the village and the crumpling fortification we set ourselves in. After all, with Traverse Town having gone kersplat and there being noticeable gaps in the sky with not every world having come back to reality, we were thinking there'd probably be a few refugees. Also, Hollow Bastion used to be one heck of a sprawling city with that looming castle plopped right in the middle of it. Once all those people made it back from the realm of darkness, they'd need a place to stay.

Tifa and Barret had arrived with Red not long after the Keyblade brat had locked up Hollow Bastion's door. Found them roaming around Traverse Town when it started disintegrating. Those three have the worst fucking luck.

And Cloud? Found his happy ass on a hint from Yuffie and Leon. Said they fought with him when they'd stolen one of my gummies and gone to train Sora to use his Keyblade correctly at the Coliseum. Sure enough, I found the spiky-headed idiot there, all somber and pouting and whimpering about darkness and contracts and blah blah blah. Damned near did a double take when I saw him, what with his being in Vincent's cape and wearing his clawed glove. Cloud said that Vincent was dead and he took them to remember him by. I'd expected as much, but it still hurt to hear confirmation.

Didn't take much convincing to get Cloud to get onboard the gummi. All I really had to say was, "Hey, idiot, Aerith is gonna kick your ass for making a deal with the God of the Dead, you know," and his winged butt was in that ship faster than a person could say 'fudge sticks.' Kind of caught me by surprise to see that wing. He snarked that it was a sign of his contract that he hadn't fulfilled yet. I wrote it off as him being Cloud, and Cloud being weird, and that was all there was to say 'bout that.

So except for Vincent who was confirmed dead and Reeve who was as good as dead, we were all together. Despite the attacks by the Heartless, we had made it through.

Seeing as how we'd all had rather rough experiences because of the little twerps, I guess it ain't hard to understand why everyone's untrusting of the Shadow we've got with us. Funny that us original Traverse Town guys are the only ones to really overlook what he is and give him the benefit of the doubt.

Guess Tifa, Barret and Red went through some extra heinous shit, seeing how lon git took them to make it to Traverse Town. Wonder if they had to go through the realm of darkness to make it there – none of those three'll talk. Red gets a haunted look in his eye and snorts that he'd rather not remember those times. Tifa gets all quiet and teary-eyed, making me regret that I asked. Barret just snarls in anger and punches something nearby, usually a wall.

I'm glad they made it, personally. Don't really want to know what kind of hell they faced. Still, wish they wouldn't take it out on the little Shadow. The little guy's tried his damnedest to not give in to his instincts – anyone can see the strain his efforts put on him by watching, by observing how he grips his wrists and tries to wrestle his own hands down to keep from attacking us. Sweet gesture. Right up there with saving Leon's hide.

Tifa's getting better around him. She doesn't try to mash his face in, anyway. She'll greet him and smile at some of his sillier behavior, but she won't go out of her way to deal with him.

Red just kind of ignores him as well as he can. He'll actively leave the room if he comes ambling through.

Barret always glares at him. Scares the little fuck 2D, too.

And Cloud? Well, he was a slave of Hades, kicking Heartless ass every other day. Don't think he has any particular reason to fear, like or dislike him.

Leon, surprisingly, was the most trusting of him. In fact, he straight up seemed to believe that the damned thing had nothing but good intentions and that we should help the Shadow find the Keyblade twerp.

I wanted to argue that it was a waste to try and help the Shadow do something so foolish, seeing that Sora was on a completely different world and wouldn't likely be coming back any time soon. Also pointed out that Sora'd probably just smash the thing out of existence at first sight.

Leon had just lookeda t me with those blue-gray eyes of his that make him look like a kicked puppy and reminded me that if it weren't for the Shadow, he'd be lost to darkness forever.

Fucking conniving asshole.

Yeah, he got me to agree to break out a gummi to escort the Shadow across the fucking universe. On condition that he come too, of course. If I was flying, he was going to do all the fucking fighting that comes with going out into Heartless territory, all the fucking navigating, and all the fucking Shadow babysitting.

He'd readily agreed. Couldn't deter him worth beans.

As soon as he'd found out that Leon was intending to throw his lot in with the Shadow and haul its little mindless self around the universe in search of the ever-traveling Sora, Cloud decided that there was no way we were going to leave him behind.

Noting that the gummi can sit four adults pretty handily, Tifa, Barret, Yuffie, Red and Aerith had taken it upon themselves to argue as to who else would get to come along.

Leon had put all of that to a halt by asking 'bout the 'Vincent' he'd heard us all talk about.

After I'd informed him that the old vampire could be considered the brains of the operation (besides myself, of course), Leon had nodded and told us that the final seat in the gummi was to remain empty, reserved for him, and that our first order of business was going to be to find him as to get another introspective view of where Sora might be heading next and what exactly was going on with the universe with the falling stars and all. He didn't want to tail Sora – he wanted to head him off at the pass.

That caused an instant uproar in the people who'd just been bluntly told that they were staying behind. Cloud kindly reminded us that Vincent was dead.

Leon told him that he was an idiot and had written him off as dead just a few days ago.

I'd never seen Cloud turn quite so purple with rage in my life.

Only a madman like Leon would dare turn his back on Cloud in that state.

"Pack up. We're heading out tomorrow," Leon commanded.

I snorted even as Cloud snarled a colorful curse and tromped off to pack a travel bag.

Well, looked like ol' Cid was back in the saddle again. Picking up a rag, I nodded at my newest sparkly gummi, the Highwind Level 8. "Well girl, looks like we're gonna have a good long drive ahead of us." Slowly running the rag over huge structural blocks, I let myself relax and focus on what madness I'd let Leon decide to drag us all into.

I almost laughed when I noticed the Shadow picking up a rag and mimicking me.

_-tbc-_

* * *

All I have to say is this – tying FF7, FF8 and KH together is a _bitch._ Yeah, you try making everyone from Hollow Bastion and still having the original Final Fantasy worlds and storylines intact. I grump and snarl in frustration, and hope fervently that this came out all right and fairly believable. I thought it was reasonable when I wrote it.

* * *

Review replies: 

DarkStarPhoenix: Sheesh, I swear the typos I create are going to be the death of me. Thanks for pointing them out. Edits have already been made. :P Sure, would like to read your poetry! Just send 'em in. :) And thank you so much for the fanart! Leviathan looked quite good. Just about what I was imagining when I typed the thing up! As for why the Shadow drew Sora as he did, that'll be answered later – perhaps. Well, it should be! And thanks for giving me more confidence in the speed I'm moving this thing at. It's much needed.

littlekittykat: Glad you liked it! And yeah, the Shadow's exactly who we all think it is. :) Thanks for submitting to the plushie – he greatly appreciates it, even if he only smugly smirks at the attention. (laughs)

Li the Twilight Knight: Oh no… my sewing skills suck and I haven't ever mastered those mysterious 'bobbin' thingies that go in the machine. (whimper) So, you don't care what Sora's doing either? My bestest buddy Ava said the same thing! Oye. Here he is, the center character of Kingdom Hearts, and people don't give a rat's ass about him. (snigger) I feel the same way, but I started off with Sora and I'm going to keep going with him, damn it all! Plus he gives me the great opportunity to play with old Disney movies that no one remembers/has heard of. Just wait for the next one. (evil grin) The plushie is cackling in glee, BTW, as his fanbase expands. Sheesh. Give him _more_ of a superiority complex while we're at it, why don't'cha? XP

Shadow Cat17: Glad you liked it! Yeah, LeonxCloud kicks massive booty. My favorite pairing, too, even though RikuxSora is a damned close second. Maybe I just feel more attached to LC because they're in my age category. (sheepish laugh) Anyway, hope you like the new chapter!

* * *

Suggestions? Compliments? Complaints? (clears her throat and reaches for the poem again) 

Come unto my Ansem plushie,  
You know that you want to.  
He's telling you to submit to him,  
He wants you to review!

Many thanks to DarkStarPhoenix! (reaches over to smack the plushie that tromps around with a 'Submit to _darkness_!' picket sign) Reviews, moron plushie. Submit reviews. (holds her head as the plushie snarks that his strength returns)


	22. Ponder

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 22  
The Heartless – Ponder

Pandemonium seemed to have set in over the place I was staying.

Everyone was rushing this way and that, busily preparing for something that was happening beyond my scope of comprehension.

I didn't know, nor did I particularly care. I was being ignored, which suited me just fine. No threats towards my existence, no odd stares, no negative attention. I might as well not even have existed to the people of the establishment.

So I found myself reflecting on what I had been shown and what I had attempted to disclose.

The woman in pink who'd always been so very nice to me had taken me to the upstairs study in the library with a stack of papers and a box of colored pencils. She'd seated herself at the small desk and laid her supplied out before her. I was naturally curious, so I hopped onto the edge of the table to look at what she was doing.

Judging by her smile, my action was exactly what she was hoping for. She'd begun to draw.

I quickly recognized the fortification she was putting on paper. It was the castle we were in. When I'd looked at her with confusion, she'd elaborated with her picture, drawing a few small figures that were supposed to be people. The spiky-haired blond that had found me in the tunnels and fought against the black angel. Her, with her large pink hair ribbon tied in a bow. The lank man I'd helped cross from darkness back to the realm of light. The short-haired girl with the metal stars. The old blond with his spear.

She was showing me where they were from. She was identifying this castle as being their home.

Getting the idea, I'd grasped the box of pencils and stared into its recesses.

My mind raced without control, trying to snatch some visage of what I would call 'home' other than the utter blackness of the incomplete Kingdom Hearts.

I saw blue.

Taking blue, I began to scribble on the paper. Blue slowly took up half of the white expanse. Blue that would roll in and out under a blue sky, bright and colorful with light dancing through it and on top of it, sparkling uncontrollably and beautifully.

Yellow.

Yellow met blue, sprawling before blue, being a barrier and a landscape for those who would dwell upon it.

Green.

Green plants stretched towards that blue sky, springing from the yellow land.

And people.

Oh, how I wish I could remember the people I was attempting to draw! None of them seemed familiar, yet they were bleeding from the black pencil I'd grabbed as if I'd drawn them a thousand times before. Indeed a section of my mind was cursing my ineptitude with my drawing utensil, snidely telling me that I once was much more skilled at what I was attempting to do.

Looking at the picture, I stared.

I didn't recognize it at all, but somehow it seemed familiar.

Turning the page over, I continued to draw.

Brown.

Walls, floor, bookshelves. A desk behind which sat a great chair.

Silver.

A room beyond the walls, a stark contrast to the rustic, antiquated condition of the study. A large computer, futuristic in all aspects, responding to the wishes of its user in every fashion. A huge red orifice through which the computer would take stock of the room, recognizing its user and whoever would come to stand before it to discern who could have access to its power.

Then an array of colors.

Books, lamps, charts, wall hangings, a portrait of someone so very familiar. Familiar silver hair. Familiar sharp features.

Was it me? Or was it someone I once knew?

I stared at that drawing as well.

I didn't recognize is either.

Then the others had come. The man I'd rescued from darkness had drawn something I did actually know.

The Keyblade.

I remember….

I remember the wielder.

A dark being surrounded by the aura of one who'd become one of us, one who'd had his heart ripped out of his chest. One that was half of a vessel, yet such a being of light.

A being of light….

Was he what I was searching for?

True, all Heartless seek the Keyblade. It is the key to fully unlocking Kingdom Hearts, admitting that dark Kingdom to the realm of light and letting them become one, letting us become one with all we desire to have.

But something in my shredded soul told me that my reasons were different.

Since that day, the people here had been scampering about, apparently packing for something. The large colorful vessel had been stocked with multiple boxes of stuff. The spiky-haired blond had tossed a large bag onboard and was helping to load more boxes. The gray-eyed brunet was using the computer onboard the ship and in the room it was housed in extensively. The older blond was ordering people around and wiping the vessel clean from time to time. Everyone else was packing boxes with foodstuffs, vials of that green liquid that had saved the brunet from death, vials of blue fluid, weapons, armor, bedrolls, lamps – all the necessities for travel.

I was lost, ignored and clueless. I occupied myself by pondering what it was I was trying to remember.

Were the memories that had come to me over the time I'd been here actually my own? Which picture was the one I had truly intended to draw?

And… why did I seem to have two different souls contesting equally for their minds to return?

Even as I pondered, time passed and I was soon shuffled onto the vessel with the inevitable passengers and the pilot. The brunet saw to it that I was buckled in, seated in the last open seat as the spiky-haired blond had chosen to sit beside the lank dark-haired man and the older blond had taken the pilot's chair.

Without my knowledge of where we were going or what we were doing, we abruptly took off.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Review replies: 

littlekittykat: Aw, I'm sorry that your computers suck and that you were lost. But that chapter was more for the FF gamers than anyone else, I guess… I just felt like I had to tie them all in somehow, being the 'all things must make some semblance of sense' freak that I am. No worries about knowing nothing – soon we'll know something. Maybe. Heh heh. Well, glad you read and reviewed despite it all! Here's yet another update, as ordered!

DarkStarPhoenix: Yeah, typos will be the death of me. Gah. Sorry that I spent so long on the reminiscing, but in my mind I had to clarify how everything ties together. Glad it was believable. I'll read your poetry later – probably when I'm out to sea again (we leave on Wednesday and don't come back for 2 more weeks. Set to return around May 20th. Yay, us. Gag) as it'll give me something to do – read poetry and get ready for the next Disney movie that Sora goes through! Yay for movies even older than Tron! Yeah, I was, like, one when this hit the theaters. The first time I saw it was when it came out on Betamax/VHS and we rented it. I was, like, six. And it terrified me. (laughs) Reiteration – did like the Leviathan much! And yeah, the FF guys as kids is an adorable thought, neh? To answer your question… there are plans in the works for the old guy to come in. But don't let that confuse you – there's going to be another guy named 'Vincent' in this, proliferating the Sora chapters for the next few installments after I finish up in Passamaquoddy. The robot 'Vincent' is a rather prominent character in the movie I'm using. (grin)

Li the Twilight Knight: Eh heh heh. But sewing by hand takes a long time! (flail, whine, then grin) Well, when I get some time in port that's longer than a few days I'll defiantely considering sewing up that plushie. That, and restoring my car. I love my old car – I haven't worked on it nearly enough. (sniff) On your point two, I smile and laugh because I've had so many people go 'what movie is this? I don't recognize it!' that I just discount it as being too old for many people to recall. Meaning, of course, that the next movie's going to be tough for other people – I remember it vividly, but it was on video when I was a little squirt. It started production when I was five months old. Hit theaters when I was in my first year. Yep, that old. And point three? Damned right he does! BTW, your submitting is encouraging him. (flicks the cackling plushie from Hell)

Shadow Cat17: Aw, so glad you liked it! I personally thoroughly enjoyed typing from Cid's POV. He's as crotchety as I am. (laughs) Only big differences are the fact that he has fourteen years on me in his KH age, he smokes, and he's a guy. :P And I've always picked up on Leon being a conniving, convincing bastard. He's a strategist. He can use anything (and I mean _anything_) to his advantage. Neh heh heh. And as for who can piss Cloud off and not get killed… (ponders) Hmmmm… (spends the next week pondering)

Dark Mog: (_VIOLENT CURSING_) God damned typos! Death death death death death… (tromps off with her gerbil in one hand and a butter knife in the other to go slay typo demons) Thanks for pointing that out. Edit has been made. (grin) Please, do continue to do so. Seeing as how I fervently type these in the middle of the night from the papers I print up from the work LAN, there're bound to be mistakes and I do appreciate the opportunity to be shown them and to correct them (no matter how much I whine and bitch). Glad you appreciate my efforts so far as characterization goes – that's actually what got me started in fanfiction, having read far too many fics where the characters Quatre and Trowa were so utterly thrashed that they weren't identifiable as being from Gundam W anymore. Original characterization is what appeals to me – if you're going to use the character, might as well keep it intact, neh? That's also a reason I don't like many AU fics (and hence don't write many of them – I've delved into a total of 2) and tend to stick with stuff that attempts to remain in the context (if not in the actual timeline) of the original work. Tight living quarters for the boys… you're going to probably enjoy a particular scene in chapter 24, even though it's quite brief and easily overlooked. I'm glad you're liking the direction this is taking – it's been planned for awhile, but there's still many a detail that has yet to be ironed out and will likely take even me by surprise. But it's fun, and that's what matters. As for any 'optional' chapters, there'll be at least one when I get back from being out to sea. Look for the link around a May 20th timeframe. :)

* * *

Alrighty. Wanna hit me with something? (reaches for the reoccurring poem) 

Come unto my Ansem plushie,  
You know that you want to.  
He's telling you to submit to him,  
He wants you to review!

Many thanks to DarkStarPhoenix! (glowers at the plushie who's doing obscene pelvic-thrust dancing to celebrate the fact that he has a fan club)


	23. Farewells

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 23  
The Keyblade Master – Farewells

I groaned as I lifted my throbbing head from the wet ground. A rough cough shook my lungs, encouraging loose sand and seawater to erupt from my throat and my mouth, leaving my tongue with the feel of sandpaper, my taste buds wishing for certain death and my stomach nauseous to the point of nearly allowing my breakfast to say hello to my lips once more.

Bleary eyes blinked a few times, my view of the coastline slowly coming back into focus. Blurs on top of the fuzzy ground eventually clarified into rocks and scraggly bushes seeping away from a sprawling beach with rough crabgrass lined walkways. Turning my head slightly I got a good glimpse of the sky and the lighthouse – the sky was a bright blue color, the lighthouse tall and proud and white as pure clouds, sunlight dancing off of the out-of-sight windows high above us. The storm had long since passed as had the dreadful night, leaving nothing but a pristine day to greet us.

Shuffling my shaking arms below my waterlogged body, I eased myself slowly up and pulled my knees to rest below my chest. Heaving for a few moments, feeling every bruise that littered my body scream to my brain for recognition, I winced and felt tears touch the lashes of my eyelids. It felt like I'd been through a meat grinder.

I heard a garbled moan to my left. Turning my head took more effort than I'd initially believed it would, but I accomplished the task anyway. My lips helplessly formed a worn smile as I laid my gaze on the drenched white duck at my side, his zippered hat askew atop his head and his staff resting a few inches from his feathered right hand. The tiny cricket that had hopped into one of his pockets for the ride was laying on his back in the sand, his top hat a good inch from the tips of his antennae, his little jacket in complete disarray around his little green body.

"Donald, Jiminy, you guys alright?" I groaned.

Jiminy slowly pushed himself to his feet and retrieved his top hat. Putting the sopping wet article onto his head, he turned and groaned as he shook his gloves free of water. "I'll say. That was one of the most intense battles yet," the cricket bemoaned as he began to wring his jacket dry.

"Yeah," I responded, still refusing to get off of my knees. I was afraid of the vertigo I was certain would strike my head the moment I got up and what that sensation would encourage my body to do. "Donald, you okay?" I asked again after a few moments.

The duck's fingers curled, then clenched. A sharp snort of air escaped the nostrils atop his bill.

He exploded from the sand, his garbled voice screaming in fury as he turned sharply on his webbed feet and shook his fists at the sea. "You lousy Heartless! Who do you think you are? You made me ma-a-a-a-"

And the rest was lost completely to my ears as his snarling degraded into ducky shrieks of obscenities. Perhaps it's a good thing he becomes unintelligible when he gets exceptionally riled – I'd almost hate to know exactly what it is he shouts half of the time.

Maybe Donald could actually give Cid a run for his money in the foul language department.

I wouldn't doubt that, actually.

"Where's Goofy?" I groaned out after a moment of recovery.

"Goofy?" Donald quaked, his tirade put to an abrupt halt.

Snoring met our ears from the other side of nearby rocks.

I let a silly grin meet my lips as I let my head sag completely on a noodle-like neck. "Guess that answers that question."

Donald turned sharply towards those obscuring rocks, slapping his big flat feet on the sand. "Get up, you big palooka!"

The snoring came to a grumbled halt and was punctuated by a loud yawn. White gloves covered with sand stretched towards the sky as the bipedal dog sat up, his mouth wide open, his eyes pressed shut. Turning towards us as he smacked his lips, he let his eyes drift open and flashed us a grin that was, well, goofy. "Good mornin'!" he quipped, waving merrily at us.

"Good morning, he says," Donald huffed as he crossed his arms and tapped his foot on the beach.

Jiminy and I couldn't help but laugh as Goofy looked at Donald, complete and utter confusion in his eyes while scratching his head and the duck just glowered at him down the length of his bill.

"Oh! We need to get to the harbor!" I proclaimed seconds later, abruptly dropping out of my joyous laughter at the merriment caused by everyone being alive and all right after that horrific fight. "The ship's crest on the mast above the crow's nest. That's the location of the keyhole!"

"You're sure about that?" Donald asked, finally ripping his attention away from his long-time friend and staring at me.

"Yeah. I saw it when we were saving that clipper last night. The keyblade responded. I just didn't have the time to seal it."

"Alright then! We'd better get goin'!" Goofy laughed as he jumped to his feet.

Before I could stop them, Goofy and Donald had already gone running up the grass-lined trail that lead from the beach towards the distant town, clunky shoes and webbed feet turning up the sand. Jiminy hopped into my hood a moment later, pointing after them. "We'd best get on our way, Sora," he advised.

"Wait up, guys!" I shouted as I tore after them.

I finally caught up with them as we reached the edge of Passamaquoddy. Glaring at them as they sheepishly looked from the wandering townsfolk to myself, I snorted. "Remember why you guys didn't come to town now?"

"Heh heh heh heh," Donald sheepishly laughed.

"Gawrsh, they sure aren't reactin' funny, though!" Goofy said. "Maybe they'd seen somethin' even more different than us!"

"I doubt that," I quietly muttered as I began to trek into town properly, Donald and Goofy resolutely following at my heels. Walking past the white picket fence that I passed every time I came into town, I looked at the old man who dwelled in the residence that owned that barrier.

He just looked up at us and grinned.

Weird!

Things got even more odd as we made our way to the piers where the majestic clipper, looking heavily worn and beaten thanks to its close encounters with the Heartless the night before, was moored. Almost everyone in the town was congregated there, cheering heavily and happily.

It took quite a while before the crowd finally began to dissipate and we could approach. Once again, no one gave a secondary glance to the fact that a clothed duck and a bipedal dog were following me.

"Nora! Pete!" I called out as I approached them. Raising a quizzical brow at the man that Nora was clutching in her arms, I smiled.

"Hey, Sora!" Pete called as he happily waved. A moment later, he paused and stared. "Who're your friends?"

"Oh, right. This is Donald, and he's Goofy."

"'Oh right,' you say? Some friend you are, Sora!" Donald angrily huffed.

"Hello there, Pete! We've heard a lot about you!" Goofy cordially greeted, happily offering his hand to the redhead.

As they shook hands, I stared and shook my head roughly. Then the man who was being hugged by Nora finally spoke.

"After seeing that spectacle with the Mayor's cigar, seeing these guys really is nothing," he chuckled brightly, his deep voice laughing and merry.

"Oh!" I quipped. I finally understood.

If the town finally understood that Elliott was real, then Donald and Goofy wouldn't really be that much of a shock.

Nora finally turned and smiled at us. "Would you believe it? Paul's been lost at sea for years, and he finally returns!"

Pete grinned and nodded. "Elliott found him!"

I couldn't help but laugh. "I'd believe that. Elliott's a great help to everyone."

A few moments of jolly laughter passed before Nora arched a brow and looked critically at me. "You're not here just to see us, are you, Sora?"

"Actually, no ma'am," I replied politely. "There's something on that clipper I've got to see."

"What do you need?" the man who'd been identified as 'Paul' asked, his smile bright under his thick moustache. "I'll give you a full tour aboard her! You and Pete."

"That'd be great," I said with a smile.

It was a fabulous tour of the ship, starting from its deepest bowels and finally reaching the main deck. Once there, I smiled as I noticed the glistening ship's crest.

Without provocation, the keyblade formed itself in my hand. Gripping the handle of Ultima Weapon tightly and trying desperately to ignore the startled gasps and questioning stares of the people around me, I lifted it and pointed its fancily crafted tip towards that placard that hung above the crow's nest.

After the stream of light had erupted from my keyblade and collided with that shining crest and the click of the keyhole locking reverberated on the seaside air, I lowered the blade and looked at all of the quizzical stares that were focused on me. A sheepish grin slid onto my lips even as I sent the keyblade away and laughed quietly. "Eh heh… eh. I wish I could explain…."

"You were one of the people that helped us last night," Paul said in complete awe. "I thought you looked familiar! However, with the night as black as it was I wasn't able to see you too clearly. All I could really see was that sword you just had."

"You saw us?" I whimpered, my head bowing a little. So much for not really interfering in the affairs of the world all that much. We seemed to have the worst luck complying with that.

"Sure did," Paul said with a grin. "Nora here refused to believe me when I told her that three strange little people flew up to my ship to beat away small hovering pirate ships that were trying to force us onto the rocks."

"You can fly?" Pete instantly chirped, his eyes wide and bright. "Wow! How's it done?"

I chuckled very nervously. "Well, I have a lot of help. It's not something I can naturally do."

"Tinkerbell's a great help with that," Goofy interjected.

Donald roughly elbowed Goofy in his side with a hissed, "Shut up, you dummy!"

Nora simply shook her head. "I don't know what to believe anymore. Dragons, talking ducks, flying boys, bipedal dogs, Paul returning from the grave – it's like there's no separating reality from fantasy anymore," she muttered.

"Well, isn't that a good thing sometimes?" Pete asked, his eyes wide and bright.

She pondered for a few minutes before laughing and wrapping one arm around the boy's shoulders, giving him a gentle hug. "It certainly is."

Paul chuckled at the scene before looking off towards the sea. "Say, I haven't seen that old lighthouse of yours for a mighty long time now. How about we head over there and have a nice, big supper to commemorate this? My homecoming and our new friends' heroics that saved the day?"

"That's a great idea!" Pete exclaimed. "Come on, guys!"

As Pete took off running and Paul, Nora and Lampie laughed, I looked back at Donald and Goofy. "Well?"

Donald took off running after the boy, then waved to us. "C'mon!"

Laughing, we took off after the boy, leaving the adults to walk at a more leisurely pace towards our destination.

A jabbering followed us once we were well outside of town and crossing the lush plain of grass with its sparse trees that separated the lighthouse and the beach it stood guard over from the rest of civilization. Slowing my run, I looked around.

Elliott was panting happily as he ran alongside of me.

"Donald! Goofy! Wait up!" I called out even as I stopped my own running, panting as I rested my hands on my knees.

The dragon beside me jabbered, reaching over with a hand patting my head. Looking up I smiled brightly. "I never got to thank you for all the help last night, Elliott."

Ducking his head, his cheeks flushed slightly as he let an 'aw' slide from his mouth and smiled while clenching his hands before his thick body and shuffling from foot to foot. He blurted out a string of jibberish that I could swear almost sounded like he was trying to convey that it was no problem to assist us.

As Donald and Goofy finally came back to my side, I looked with concern towards the little town of Passamaquoddy that we'd been running from. "I'm still worried, though. Even though we locked the keyhole, that doesn't mean that the Heartless are going to stay away. After all, until we'd locked Kingdom Hearts on Destiny Islands, the Heartless were still popping up in Traverse Town, Deep Jungle, Atlantica… everywhere where we'd met them before, even after locking the keyhole."

Elliott jerked his head up, his big blue eyes wide in concern as he yelped.

"You're right," Donald said, his bill drooping as he looked sad. "And we can't stay to protect the world forever. We still gotta find the King!"

"And Riku," I quietly added, looking at the grass at my feet. "We've stopped the worst, but haven't ended the threat forever. Why does it feel so useless sometimes…?"

I heard more than saw Elliott's sorrowful expressions as he ducked his head over mine and laid one of his heavy hands onto my slumped shoulder. Moments later, he was panting happily, his dragonish voice merrily yammering away.

"What's that?" I asked as I looked up, willing my eyes to lack the sorrow that the thought of our continuingly failing search for Riku and the King, and the odd ineptitude of locking keyholes to save the worlds brought over me.

Thumping his chest, the dragon chirped and clucked his tongue.

"I think Elliott's offering to watch out for Heartless for us!" Goofy proclaimed.

The dragon quickly nodded his head, his pink ruffled hair flopping up and down with his vigorous gesture.

"But that's almost a full time job! You can't watch the entire world for Heartless and protect Pete at the same time!" I protested. "We can figure something-"

I was interrupted as Elliott huffed at me, ducking his head to cluck at my face. He shook his head slowly from side to side before pointing up the road. 'Pete' he clearly garbled before muttering in his jabbered tongue again, waving his thick hands at his sides for emphasis before pointing behind himself, hugging himself and then holding his hands before him, left on the bottom with palm up and right on top with palm down. He then pointed to the seashore we'd been running towards, giving a little puff of flame as he did and saying the word 'Pete' again.

I slowly tried to put the yammering and the charades together. "You're saying… that Pete has a family and a real home now, so he doesn't need your protection anymore? That he doesn't need to run away anymore because he has the lighthouse?"

The dragon nodded vigorously. Then he thumped me solidly on my back, nearly sending me sprawling into the grass.

He happily panted and clicked his tongue as I regained my balance and looked up at him through my choppy bangs. Making his weird collection of noises, he ended it with a garbled proclamation that sounded oddly like 'Sora.'

Goofy nodded along, apparently able to completely comprehend the dragon's statements. "He's sayin' that you need his help more than Pete does, so he's gonna help you!"

"You're really going to keep a lookout for the Heartless?"

Elliott snarled and clenched his clawed hands in a supposedly threatening manner, licks of flame leaking from his nose as he bared his fangs.

"I think that's a yes. Well, if anyone can smash those lousy Heartless, it's Elliott!" Donald proclaimed.

"But it's going to break Pete's heart to be separated from Elliott," I quietly said. "I'm still not so sure this is the right choice."

Elliott shook his head, his eyes big and gentle as he patted my head, smothering my natural spikes under his massive hand. Stepping away with a blurted cheerful proclamation that I stood no chance of understanding, he spun around with a strange array of blurbs and vanished in a fancy shower of sparkling blue blips of light.

"He's already made his decision, Sora," Goofy said as he laid his hand on my shoulder and started steering me towards the beach and the lighthouse. "He's going to watch out for the Heartless."

"This world will be safe so long as he's on the lookout," Donald added.

"Besides, this is the best way he can protect Pete now. Pete's got a family and a home. He doesn't need Elliott with him all the time, you know," Goofy finished.

I slowly nodded. "You're right.

"And now it's time that we get on our way," Jiminy proclaimed from my hood. "After all, we still have to find the King and your friend Riku! And there could be other worlds in danger, too. We should report back to Hollow Bastion and see if they've turned up anything about why the barriers are falling."

My shoulders slumped. "Looks like we're missing another meal at the lighthouse, eh?"

Donald chortled before saying, "I'm sure they'll give you a rain check on that."

"Well, we'd better get going then!" I said, turning my enthusiasm on like a light and pumping my fist towards the sky. "Let's get to the gummi!"

Moments after my proclamation, Pete ran by with a smile and a wave. "Sora! Meet us there, alright?"

Looking at my friends, I sneered. "Well, that cinches it. We're not leaving without a good supper at the lighthouse!"

Donald stamped his foot even as Goofy laughed and nodded.

Turning, I started walking towards the lighthouse, barely hearing Paul's voice proclaim, "There really is a dragon!" over the gentle sea breeze that flowed from the distant waves. Looking towards the heavens, I smiled as Elliott soared above, looping playfully about amongst the clouds before vanishing after Pete's reminder that he's supposed to be invisible.

Meeting everyone at the lighthouse, we all took a few moments to laugh at Paul's amazement over the fact that the dragon was perfectly real when he was sitting at a table with a talking dog and duck who wore clothing and behaved like human beings.

The meal was short, rather bittersweet with the knowledge that we'd be departing soon and might never again see this jolly little world, and very tasty. We talked and laughed about nonsense things – the Gogans, Pete's school and classmates, the fishermen bringing in a huge catch after Elliott 'brought the fish back,' the laughable departure of Doctor Terminus and his assistant, the rescuing of the Mayor by Elliott from the falling power line.

It was a nice break from the restless adventure myself and my companions were on. But as all good things are destined to, it came too quickly to its end.

With a hearty amount of waving, me and my two companions with Jiminy in my hood walked away from the lighthouse and made our way to the cave system that was now bereft of inhabitants.

I sighed quietly as I saw Pete standing out by the foghorn and jumping up and down, arms spread in a grand wave of goodbye as our gummi ship blasted off into space.

"Goodbye," I quietly offered, lifting my own hand in farewell as Donald plotted our course back to Hollow Bastion.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Review replies: 

Dark Mog: Hey, I actually appreciate the nit-picking! It's good for the soul. (laughs) But yeah, I know what you mean with the GW fandom. I still write for it – rarely these days, but still delve in. I mostly lost motivation due to lack of readers (only reason my stuff is ongoing is because _I_ happen to like my plot and want to see it resolved someday) – it seems that those fics that actually stay in the canon timeline and grasp the original characterizations are a lot less popular than 'hey, let's hook them up!' fics. Just because I have the boys actually killing people from time to time and getting into gun battles. And the plot from hell. (holds head and groans) It's a bad thing when there's over 20 pages of typed notes so a girl can keep track of where her own story's going. And oof, do I know what you're talking about with poor Zexion! (cries) I personally wouldn't recommend that anyone who didn't play CoM try and write the guy. Sheesh. He's supposed to be slick, conniving, highly intelligent, plotting and sly as hell. Not a femmy, smiley little sex-driven brat. Gr. I loved Zex the most out of the Org guys in CoM – he made me snivel without control when he went kersplat. Such a pathetic way to die, too. (grumps) And… yeah, the fic's going to go on for awhile. Glad you're enjoying it:)

Li the Twilight Knight: Well, next movie… neh heh. If you want to watch it ahead of time, go for it! It's going to be 'The Black Hole.' OLD Disney movie. Came out a good three years before 'Tron'. Made with hardly any computer animation, too. All miniatures, models on strings and whirlpools with paint and intense lighting. And a space backdrop that was 30' tall with little pinpricks in it and lights behind it to make the great beyond. Awesome effects, considering what they were working with! Next up is Cloud POV. Leon will get his chance again soon – I've just got to get into a 'Leon' mood again. As for how long this is going to be… (rubs back of her head, shrugs) No freaking clue. I know how it's going to end, but how I'm going to get there is another story entirely. :P Thanks for the offer to keep reviewing! That will, in fact, keep me working away like a busy little beaver. :)

DarkStarPhoenix: Yeah, away again. It's the joy of being in the Navy. They send you out when they need you out, and the ship needs to go out a few more times. Huzzah. (gag) Have heard of Fruits Basket. Never got around to reading it, though. I'm more into Gohan Drug. (cackle) That one's fun. But I understand fully why you'd collapse whimpering 'Ansem' over and over! I'd do the exact same thing. XD As said, I'll read your stuff while I'm trapped out in the briny blue. It'll definitely give me something to do. :) And glad you liked the Heartless chapter! Poor li'l guy just keeps getting walloped with problems. He's a great target. (snigger) And glad I could clarify the aura in the picture. Thanks for continuing to read and review! (humble bow)

Shadow Cat17: Well, I do try to keep the Heartless interesting, seeing as he is rather a bit of a central character to the story. :) And hey, with the quantity and quality of the reviews I'm getting (yeah, I know some people get, like, hundreds of reviews for only 10 chapters, but I'm ecstatic to get a couple per chapter) I'm guaranteed to keep writing. Thanks for the encouragement, and hope you liked the chapter!

littlekittykat: Eh heh heh. New stuff happened _this_ chapter! And I promise new stuff happens in the next one! As for what's after that… not written yet, so I have no clue. :P But I promise the story's going to be forced to move along. As for kicking the Ansem plushie's butt… good idea. (growls at it)

* * *

Smack me! (reaches for the reoccurring poem) 

Come unto my Ansem plushie,  
You know that you want to.  
He's telling you to submit to him,  
He wants you to review!

Many thanks to DarkStarPhoenix! (reels as she gets smacked, then glares at the plushie who cackles and flails with his sign that reads 'What do you hope to accomplish?') Getting reviews, you twerp. What else? (groans as it flips the sign over to display the message 'It's a hopeless endeavor!')


	24. Flight

Last update for a time. Off to the briny blue again – no more posting until at least the 20th from me. Sorry for the strange ending of this chapter, too, but I was hoping to get more done before we hit the waves. Oh well.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 24  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Flight

I stared blankly at the stars that roared past outside, the scenery beautiful, colorful… and so blasted repetitious that I was about to beat myself to unconsciousness on the window I was seated next to. With a heavy huff I let my lips flap in exasperation and sheer boredom, holding my head up with my left hand's palm and drumming my fingers errantly on my cheek while humming the Mickey Mouse march. What? It's catchy.

"Is he always like this when he travels?" Leon's voice snarled from beside me, apparently directed at Cid.

"Damned right he is," the old pilot gruffly snapped. "Can't sit still and be fucking quiet to save his wretched life, always having to move around and yammer to everyone all the freaking time. Won't let a man pilot his ship in peace, I tell you!"

"Selphie would shoot him. She would take a lot of errant behavior, but I think this would get on her very last nerve. Especially if she were piloting."

"I'd shoot him too if I had me a gun. A bit awkward to have my trusty spear at hand sitting at the controls, you know."

I glowered at the two of them. "You can stop talking about me as if I'm not three feet away from you."

"Sorry," Cid chortled.

"No you're not," I rebutted.

"Well… yeah, I'm not," Cid snickered as he gripped the gummi's wheel and veered slightly to the right.

Stretching as I yawned, I continued with my scathing glare, fully aware yet uncaring of the fact that it lost all of its power when I was sitting around in nothing but my boxers just like everyone else in the gummi. Well, what can I say? With as little water as these microscopic ships are capable of hauling, we didn't want to waste anything on laundry. In the interest of keeping our clothing clean, we'd been reduced to underwear. And that's sole purpose was for dignity's sake.

I didn't want to see a naked Cid.

I didn't know how comfortable I'd be sitting two feet away from a naked Leon.

Shaking my head to regain my focus on something other than the taunting imagery of tanned flesh and toned muscle running through my head, I glanced at the little Shadow sitting in his seat behind Leon and myself. He was still staring with his huge golden eyes out of the window, mindlessly watching the scenery roll past.

It was rather unnerving – first off that he could find something so repetitive so encapsulating, secondly that his eyes were steadily losing the aquamarine streaks that they once held.

I rather wish we could have dug into his brain and found out what was going on in there. Leon had said that he was once a normal, good person underneath that Shadow exterior and was now steadily losing himself. Did the shift in eye-color mean that the person that had rescued Leon was fading into nonexistence?

Pushing my questions aside, I focused my gaze on Leon rather than the silent little beast behind us. "So where exactly are you thinking we're going to run across Vincent? I already told you that he's dead."

"And I already told you that in accordance with what I've heard from Cid, that opinion may not be valid."

I huffed at Leon's rather gruff answer. "You know, I took the cape and the claws from his cold, unmoving body."

"Were there any wounds?"

"No. He'd had his heart ripped away by Heartless," I answered with a clipped shake of my head.

"As said. I don't know if he'd actually be dead. Without verification I refuse to acknowledge that. If that man was the 'brains' of your operations as Cid put it, I wouldn't put it past him to utilize some of the abilities granted to him by his Mako infusion to outwit the Heartless and rescue himself."

"You're talkin' like putting himself into a stasis?" Cid interrupted, removing his eyes from the window and the displays before him for one instant to glance back at us. "Maybe even masking his heart by pretending that it didn't hold any light anymore? Well, could be possible, Cloud. Think about how we'd found him."

I frowned as I reflected on that peculiar encounter. We'd dug our way down into the deepest basements of the Nibelheim Shinra experimentation laboratory, the site where Hojo had commenced his most heinous deeds. We'd stumbled across a coffin. And when peered into, that coffin's occupant had snarled that he'd like to be left to sleep, to dream his nightmares of repentance and perhaps gain forgiveness for his sins of ineptitude in the eyes of his dearly departed beloved.

According to all he'd told us, Vincent had been sleeping from his twenty-seventh year for a span of time beyond the length of Hojo's child's existence, his self-induced imprisonment beginning when the child was but a few months conceived and already undergoing Jenova and Mako infusion experimentation. Sephiroth was nearly upon his thirtieth year of life when we'd inadvertently awakened the old ex-Turk, which put the venerable man as being in his fifty-seventh year of life. The lousy guy hadn't aged a day past the year he'd put himself into his coffin and closed the lid. Still looked twenty-seven when we'd invited light to strike his body once more.

In fact, he hadn't aged at all even during the time he was with us, remaining apparently immune to its march.

How he'd done that was far beyond me. He'd blamed the infusion experiments that had been performed on him for making him a strange, seemingly immortal creature beyond the realm of human comprehension.

Yuffie always just said that he was an old vampire.

I had laughingly agreed with the 'world's greatest ninja' on many occasions.

Considering how we'd met him, I was forced to ponder what Cid had put forth. "A stasis? Kind of like going into hibernation?"

"Slowing his heart to the point that he would be incapable of exuding light that would be detectable by the Heartless. They'd overlook him in their ravages; the Heartless don't waste their time ripping apart apparent corpses. From what I've heard from your gathering, such a thing might be possible due to the nature of the powers Mako granted him," Leon intoned.

"He's got a hell of a point," Cid agreed. "If he appears dead in every way like he did when we first shoved that coffin's lid off, it's possible that even the Heartless wouldn't notice him. Then he could've revived himself and gotten the hell off the Planet before darkness swallowed it completely. Or he could've been like Tifa, Barret and Red were – swallowed by darkness, and successfully fought his way through."

"So say Vincent is alive like you're both suspecting he is," I started, rubbing my forehead to ease away the inevitable headache, "where are we going to begin looking for him?"

"Eh…." Cid had stammered to an uncomfortable silence. He looked pleadingly at Leon for some backup.

As Leon lightly held his chin with his lank fingers and pondered, I looked away and shook my head.

It was the dreams of the hopeless that brought us out here.

Dreams that the dead were still alive. Dreams that people separated by dimensions could be found again.

I knew that we had just as good of a chance of finding Vincent as we did of seeing the Shadow behind us prancing about in human form and going to his original home, whichever drawing that might have been.

It was hopeless.

"You said he was a bit of a scholar, didn't you?" Leon said, cleanly interrupting my thoughts.

Yeah, sure did," Cid muttered as he veered slightly to the left, easing the gummi around an idly floating asteroid. "Used to be a Turk back in the day, but he was one more for researching stuff than for just goin' out and getting his ass whooped like Reno and Rude would. Was pretty heavy into Hojo's experiments. 'Fact, was pretty much a leading force in figurin' out how to do all that fancy shit with Mako that they did."

"So he would be as Red is. A person who would search for the answers to the universe in research and study material."

"Yep," Cid agreed. "But where the hell would a person go for that kind of information, eh?"

"A big library?" I blandly suggested.

After all, some corner of my mind was chortling that if there was any chance of finding Vincent, it would be holed up in some dark corner of a library with a book in his hands and cobwebs running from his unmoving body to the nearby walls.

Leon slowly nodded. "Just what I was thinking. Or perhaps a rather large laboratory, or an institute where such facilities could be found."

"But where the hell're we gonna look for something like that?" Cid snorted. "So far as I know, the Planet's still toast, you know. Everything that would've been a hell of a help figuring this shit out from there has been lost."

"I'm not thinking about your Planet, actually," Leon interjected with a clip of his head. "There are facilities in locations other than that."

I narrowed my eyes as I stared out of the window. "Hollow Bastion was the center of Ansem's research, right? Where he and his apprentices first started harnessing the power of the Heartless and delving into the secrets of Kingdom Hearts. If there was anywhere I'd be looking for research material about what's going on, it'd be there."

"Wasn't thinking there either. But on the subject of that research that Red's trying to do, the Shadow did give me an idea as to where we could find some answers back at Hollow Bastion. However, that's rather beside the point. The point right now is figuring out where your mastermind might be holed up."

"Wait, wait," I said, waving a hand to Leon as I faced him once more. "Back up a second, will you? What do you mean that the Shadow gave you an idea as to where we can find answers at Hollow Bastion?"

He looked rather blandly at me. "The drawing. He drew a laboratory we've yet to find which contains books, charts and what appeared to be a computer system. I'm positive that if anything were to contain the information about the Heartless and Kingdom Hearts that we're looking for, that would be the place to check. The color scheme matches Hollow Bastion's recesses. One of the persons drawn is fairly reminiscent of Ansem. That laboratory's back at the fortification – it's just a matter of finding it.

I stared at the back of Cid's head even as the old pilot looked at me in the reflection of the gummi's forward window.

"Fucking hell, Leon, why don't we just put you in charge of the entire damned castle? You could probably figure out where Jimmy Hoffa's buried with nothing but a spork and a strand of hair to lead the way," Cid snorted.

"Don't."

"But-" I interjected.

"_Don't._"

"Sheesh, don't have to get so snappy about it, princess," I muttered under my breath.

Moments later I was withering under his most scathing of glares.

Waving my hands desperately I shook my head. "I didn't mean that, alright? Eh… sorry."

Cid kindly interrupted, his voice gruff in its most serious of business tones. "So back to the original subject. You ain't thinkin' that Vincent's anywhere near Hollow Bastion, obviously. Not even in this secret lab place that the Shadow knows about that we ain't found yet."

"Correct. I believe we would have met this person by now."

"So where're you proposing to look?"

"As Cloud suggested. A big library. More specifically, a big library outside of Hollow Bastion."

Cid growled. "Cripes, if he could get any more vague, I'd be a fuckin'-"

"Like Disney Castle's library?" I interjected before Cid could finish what was certain to be a highly derogatory statement.

Leon lightly tapped his chin with those long fingers of his. "Good place to start. If nothing else, I'm pretty certain I can find the coordinates of the place I'm thinking of there. Provided, of course, that he doesn't turn up in that location."

I almost let my jaw drop into my lap.

Had Leon just complimented me?

He _never_ compliments other people!

"Good idea, Cloud. Wouldn't have thought of Disney," he quietly stated a few moments later.

That time my jaw really did sag open.

Looking over at me, his hazy gray eyes slowly took focus on my own Mako orbs and he flashed me a small, shy smile.

I was damned near melting into goo in my chair.

Damn that man. Damn him and his subliminal control over me.

Still I couldn't help but smile back. "Thanks," I gracious accepted, letting my hand do what it unconsciously wished – I reached over and lightly laid my fingers on his. My heart pounded loudly in my chest as he intertwined our gloveless digits, giving my hand a tender squeeze.

All of the gruff attitude, the jibing, the sarcastic remarks and the snide comments faded away in that moment. None of it seemed to really matter anymore. After all, this was Leon; as Tifa would say, would anyone really expect anything else?

Certainly I could not. To expect anything else was to expect Leon to completely change his ingrained personality. And as grating as that personality was at times, it was what made him so… Leon. Without it he'd just be another pretty face.

Eh… I meant face in the crowd. Strike the pretty part. Really, really strike the pretty part. Damn it all….

Still, I was holding hands with him. My heart seemed not to care – my brain was practically beating my face in with a plywood board with the obvious implications of the touch we were sharing and my past experiences with such endeavors.

I relaxed slowly, returning my focus to the outside world even as Leon's penetrating stare leaked elsewhere. From the edge of my hearing I caught Cid muttering about suspected coordinates, having never really been to Disney Castle, this all being a shot in the dark, and so on and so forth.

Wait a second… a shot in the dark?

Before either Leon or myself could protest, the wily pilot engaged the hyperdrive of the gummi and sent us hurtling into that dimension between light and dark, beyond space and time, destined to erupt from the tunnel crafted by the powerful engines near the castle where King Mickey once ruled – or so we hoped.

"Cid, you are one of the most reckless people I know. And considering the people I've known, that's truly saying something," Leon bit, his face riddled with anger as he glared daggers at the back of the pilot's head.

Cackling as he lit his cigarette, the old blonde just leered. "Never did say this was gonna be an uneventful journey, eh kiddo? Just hike up your knickers and hold on for the ride!"

Shuddering slightly I turned to face the window.

My Mako eyes sprang widely open seconds later.

"Eh, Cid? This particular method of travel – are we supposed to have visitors?"

"Not really, spiky. Why do ya ask?"

"Because I see other ships trying to flank our port side," I muttered, pointing out the window.

Leon was unbuckled from his seat and over my chair a second later, his left hand resting against my chair's headrest and his right laying on my thigh while he focused his glare out into deep space. I heard him gasp, his eyes widening with recognition. "Heartless," his quiet baritone voice rumbled even as his hand slightly tightened its grip on me.

It took everything I had – my focus on the dire state of our situation, my considerable self control, my longing for the contact to continue and my sheer embarrassment over my current predicament in the face of what might be the strong possibility of dying – to keep from squirming under his touch.

Well, I wasn't squirming, but my body was responding pretty damned positively to his proximity. The fact that his neck was a bare three inches from my nose, so close that I could smell the faint scent of his cologne mix pleasantly with his aftershave, wasn't making things any easier on me.

The skittering of the Shadow behind us helped draw my attention away from my straits. Turning my head, taking my focus away from those eyes that were shining silver in anticipation as they glared at our adversaries, I watched the little Heartless scamper up to the control panel.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Cid snapped, reaching over to bat the creature away. "I've got it, you moron! Don't think I can shoot and fly at the same time?"

Leon damned near sprang away from me and wrenched his chair along its sliding track until it was nearly flush with Cid's. "No, actually. Not with the aptitude that's going to be required to get us out of this."

"You shit!"

"Just fly," Leon snapped even as he took the weapons controls in his right hand and typed rapidly on the small keyboard to his left to bring up his heads-up display and targeting map.

I almost toppled right out of my chair as the ship swung violently to the right, nearly flipping over completely and barrel rolling. The engines sputtered before firing with excess power, hurling us more rapidly into the colorful space around us. Another jerk of the control stick sent us screaming up, encouraging my intestines to press heavily against my spine and damned near splattering that little Shadow onto the back wall of the cockpit.

Cid chewed nervously on his cigarette as he spun the ship deftly, controlling each engine almost independently of one another to give him maximum maneuverability. A quick jot to the right, a slip to the left, a hearty dive and a hefty roll combined with a climb nearly made me nauseous, but confused the Heartless ships that were flanking us enough to get them to line up into a nearly perfect target.

Streams of blue light poured from the ship accompanied by bursts of yellow and the winding slips of smoke left by projected missiles. Heartless ships shuddered, some dipping away, some exploding in colorful arrays of shattered gummi blocks.

With every small victory, every ship blasted to smithereens, Leon's eyes refused to lose that silvery sheen as he rapidly typed to select his weapons and throttled the joystick in his right hand to direct their fire. I knew instinctively that my own Mako eyes were glowing, the energy that coursed through my body shining through them with unspent battle-lust and adrenaline. A glance back granted me the vision of the little Heartless wringing its hands nervously, staring at the window with those big yellow eyes, what might almost be construed as pupils shining with a faint aquamarine light from that all-encompassing golden coloration.

The entire ship shuddered violently.

"Crap! We've been hit," Cid shouted. "Cloud! Make yourself fucking useful and get up here to the controls, will you? I gotta check to see how bad that is!"

"Right," I acknowledged, snapping my belt loose and jolting forward to grab Cid's suddenly vacated chair. Swinging myself into it, I stared at the controls.

"Veer right," came a sharp command from my own right.

"Got it," I blurted as I grabbed the steering wheel and cranked it as hard as I could. The missiles were fired with that action, sending them spiraling towards their intended targets, showering us with chunks of gummi as we continued sailing.

"See that lever on your left? That speeds us up and slows us down. The steering wheel's used only for direction – push in for down, pull out for up. You've already got left and right. Speed up and go left."

"You are one hell of a demanding back seat driver, Leon," I bit.

"You want to shoot?"

"No."

"Fine. Then deal with it," he snarled even as I complied with his commands.

Cid's voice screamed from the back of the gummi, "Get us out! Fucking get out of hyperdrive! I don't give a fucking damn if we're a billion years off our target; it's bad back here!"

With a biting curse, Leon reached over my control consol and slammed his palm onto a large red button.

The colorful battlefield abruptly vanished, leaving us with nothing but a splendid view of empty, black space with its multitudes of distant stars.

Sighing quietly, I slowly rose from Cid's pilot chair and slid towards the back of the ship, taking note as I turned around that we seemed to be a small distance off from an odd little planet. Ducking through the tiny hatch that existed between the engine room and the cockpit, I coughed heavily and waved my hand before my face as I was assaulted by smoke. "Cid! You alright back here?"

Coughing heavily, the older blonde shuffled forward, his brow dripping with sweat and his cigarette nothing but a butt remaining clenched between his teeth. "Yeah. Fucking engine's toast, though. We're gonna have to get some replacement parts before we can go hyper again."

"Crap," I muttered. "Well, we're near a small planet. It'll take maybe a day or two to set us down in normal drive."

"Good," Cid grumped, wiping his hands off on a rag the Shadow helpfully fetched for him. "Get us down."

Leon was already at the controls, his sharp hearing picking up Cid's orders. The ship shuddered as it was forced to comply.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Review replies: 

Li the Twilight Knight: Oh sheesh. You know how to make a girl feel old. :P 'Tron' used to be my favorite movie. My dad took me to see it when it came out in theaters. Ah, the good ol' days… but anyway! If you have the inclination, I'd suggest renting 'The Black Hole.' It's actually very good once you get over the cheese of some of the special effects. It scared the daylights out of me when I was little – I've had other people at my workplace agree with me when I say it had to be the most frightening thing Disney had come out with to that time. Good movie! Hope you liked the chapter – it's not overly fluffy, but… well, there'll be an optional chapter soon enough that should make up for that. Oh, and the plushie's sulking because he was proven wrong. Neh heh heh.

littlekittykat: (staggers from the reeling blow, shakes it off, and grins) Passamaquoddy's pronounced exactly as it reads, actually. Pass-a-ma-quad-dee. But yes! New material! Had to finish up with Sora in the 'Pete's Dragon' movie and slide the plot along. Expect plenty of new material now that the reminiscing and the ties behind Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts have been established. Huzzah! (rings gong to commence celebration)

* * *

(staggers drunkenly towards the reoccurring poem, having hit the alcohol a bit hard to celebrate her birthday a good day late - damned duty.) 

Come unto my Ansem plushie,  
You know that you want to.  
He's telling you to submit to him,  
He wants you to review!

Many thanks to DarkStarPhoenix! (flops down with her bottle of wine and ignores the plushie that cackles from his corner)


	25. Hole

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I"m simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter'sname. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

A/N 2: Before you read this, you might want to touch on the special secret extra chapter, 24.5. Here's the addy (eliminate the spaces) - www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ bcd24-5. html . Be warned - this is one of those 'optional' chapters that have been hinted at. Read at your own risk. If you want to submit a review for that, I'd be much obliged! Please just include it with a chapter 25 review, if you would. Thanks much!

_-BEGIN FIC-_

'Behind Close Doors'  
Chapter 25 - The SeeD Commander - Hole

The haul was slow and long to the idly spinning planet we'd emerged next to when we'd abandoned hyperspace. To say we were a bit bored was an exceptional understatement - I was nearly prepared to join Cloud in humming the cursed march music he continually vocalized. Sleep was a decent escape from the sheer dullness that had come to encompass the hours, but the time spent in the darkness of dreamless rest ended far too soon, leaving a man flooded with energy and prepared to face something, anything other than the mind-numbing repetition that was the view outside of the gummi ship's windows.

Cid at least had something to entertain himself with. He'd been in the engine room of the small ship we inhabited, lamenting the damage to his precious baby and snarling as he beat on the machinery encompassed in his grungy hole with a hammer. We all had attempted to assist him at one point during our arduous jaunt across normal space - Cloud and I had been firmly booted out of his mechanic's bubble, told to get our asses out of his engine room before our very presences encouraged something else to blow itself to smithereens.

I could have argued at considerable lengths with him - I am not mechanically inept. SeeD training included engineering and mechanical maintenance and construction. After all, if a mission were dependant upon heavy artillery or transportation, one had to be knowledgeable in how to keep that equipment operational andhow to repair it if necessitated. Granted Zell was our 'fix-it' man on my team, but with the basic training everyone aspiring to be SeeD received no one could be considered lacking in mechanical competency. However, considering the intensity of the older man's glares, I had decided that simply backing away and letting him have his personal space to whine and complain in was the wisest decsion that could be made. I'd offer my assistance once we were settled firmly onto the planet we were making for and see if Cid would reconsider then.

Indeed, the only person Cid allowed back in the engine room with him was the Shadow. Maybe it was due to the fact that once he understood what was wanted of him he was exceptionally enthusiastic to help coupled with his ability to go as two-dimensional as a true shadow to fit into the most inaccessible of places, but regardless he was the only assistance Cid would allow.

It all seemed rather ridiculous to me.

So, with the Shadow spending most of his time with Cid in the off-limits engine room, Cloud and I were all but trapped in the cockpit. All we ever saw of the wily pilot or his shadowy helper were their brief appearances to fetch food, something to drink, various tools that weren't located in the considerable mounds of toolboxes I knew were stashed in the vapid spaces behind us or a bucket of water for only whatever god rules these regions of space could ever know.

I would have simply attempted to sleep through my time next to the blond in that cockpit, but as previously stated a man can only sleep for so long until the body consciously objects to being thrust into such a restful state again.

Besides, it's not like I wanted to return to my dreams so readily.

It's not that they were unpleasant - rather far from that, actually. It's that they were rather questionable in nature.

Maybe my mind was wrapping itself too firmly around the confession I'd found within my torn heart while trapped in the darkness bestowed on me by the black angel's sword. Maybe the vision of Rinoa quietly telling me that I was letting my soul cry for another to fill the void her death had riped into its substance was setting itself firmly upon my mind's front. Maybe...

Maybe I was obsessing.

After all, it had been so very long since I'd let myself feel any sort of residual attachment to another human being. It had taken nearly six years to find myself feeling friendship for others again. And now my heart was obviously lusting for more.

I wasn't quite so certain I was willing to take the plunge into what I had admitted to my dreamed beloved. Part of my mind still rejected the probabilities that my heart had thrust into my conscious awareness - to love another was to replace her. That was a sacrifice I'd never make.

I hadn't been lying when I'd told the Rinoa in my dreams that she held an undying place in my heart. I would never remove her from that pedestal. I would never see her replaced.

She had been the first to ever draw that depth of feeling from me. She had been the first to melt the proverbial ice I'd encased my heart in, chiseling with her stubborn resolve through the walls I'd constructed to keep the world away. She had been the first to assure me that I could love and be loved in turn, that I wasn't so truly alone in the world, that I wasn't always destined to be abandoned by any I cast my heart towards. She had been the first to so resolutely stay by my side despite any and all of the horrors that fell around me.

Through everything - the battles against Galbadia, the struggles against Edea, the battles in Ultimecia's castle and our struggle against that all-powerful sorceress herself, she remained with me. Her love upheld me, braced me, supported me. For so long it was the only firm lifeline I had, the only stability in my world, and I held onto it with unmatched desperation. It was a precious commodity that I refused to relinquish, that's forceful removal from my waking world had nearly broken my will to continue my farce of a life.

But she had told me that I had the capaility to love once again. That my heart, so long broken by the removal of everyone who'd been precious to me, was bleeding for the attentions of one of my newer companions.

Thanks to her words and my acceptance of them, I'd found myself looking at that particular companion in a bit of a more glorified light.

I'd also been dreaming about him. As for the contents of those dreams...

I'm quite happy that I have the control over my impulses that I do, otherwise I'd certainly embarrass myself.

Those dreams were reminiscent of what I'd had when I was a teenager lusting horribly over those I'd seen that I thought were worthy of pining over. Those dreams were the type that lead to sweat-dampened sheets, mangled pillows and sodden pajamas on the return to consciousness.

As stated. Great thing I've got wonderful self control these days. I didn't once make an ass of myself during the entire journey.

Cloud, however, was obviously a bit more lacking in said self control. Whatever dreams he was having were intense. There wasn't a time when he closed his eyes that he wasn't moaning into the comfortable cradlehisarms made for his head when he was curled into his chair, sweat lightly dappling along his brow.

I learned quite a bit about Cloud during that tedious journey to our landing area. Like the fact that his frame is small and flexible enough for him to fithis entire body into one of those chairs, hiking those supple legs of his underneath him and curling like a kitten on the cushions. Also, every piece of underwear he owns has chocobos on them making them exceptionally easy to segregate from one's own laundry heap (black silk for me, thank you very much. I like the way it feels. And it doesn't look half bad). There's the fact that he seems entirely obsessed with march music and hums it incessantly when he's bored out of his mind. And he's nearly as conversationally quiet as I am - the cockpit normally is flooded with comfortable silence when it's just the two of us. While his curiosity shines in those oddly glowing eyes of his, he's polite enough to not pry without invitation.

I also learned that he's a solid enough sleeper that one can brush his spiked hair away from his face while he's resting without encouraging a single stir from his frame. That his hair is ridiculously soft despite its hard look, defying gravity without the assistance of any cosmetic products. That the light sheen to his lips is not gloss, but a natural phenomenon that suits him well. That when he's not actively fighting away the proof of the touch of darkness upon his soul the wing granted to him by Hades' contract makes itself physically present, and when he sleeps it curls lightly against his back and his side.

He shivers very slightly, never waking but letting soft mewls of appreciation leak from his lips, when that leathery wing is carressed.

I'd only done it once. I still have no idea why.

With him resting, looking so pale and vulnerable, I couldn't help it.

It was almost like the reactions I'd had with Rinoa - he was naive, innocent, pure. He was someone to be protected, someone who drew that longing to act as the Knight I once was from deep within my soul. As I'd come to terms with earlier, he was a presence I sought out, one I wished to keep from being tarnished by the harsh realities that had destroyed me, one who deserved to keep his emotional levity and beautiful heart intact. Just like her.

Unlike her, I didn't have to treat him so delicately. I knew this - indeed, I treated him entirely differently when he was conscious. When he looked at me wtih those glowing eyes with their impossibly bright blue coloration and a flat line pressing his lips together, treating him as I would any other person came naturally. Perhaps I was a bit more biting and focused on him, but that's because...

Because I care, I suppose.

I don't know. Perhaps life had tramatized me to the point that I could only express caring and friendship as cynicism and snappish criticism. After all, my closest comrade back at Balamb before I was sent on my fateful job to Timber with the Forest Owls was Seifer. There wasn't a time when we weren't at one another's throats. We swung so violently between casual acceptance of one another and billowing hatred that no one understood us, no one dared imagine us peacefully sitting in the same room together, and everyone expected us to kill each other during our exams. After all, we'd given one another our rather telltale scars during training, going more than a bit overboard.

Still, we had been comrades. When we'd received news of Seifer's execution, I had been stunned into tears and isolationism. It was a reality I'd never thought I'd e ale to cope with, a grim punch to the face that from then on he existed only in the past tense, a fate I hoped to never be demoted to myself - I suppose it was then that I realized, despite our bickering and our constant driving of one another, that I would have considered him my dearest friend. Then the asshole ended up being alive, being Ultimecia's Knight, and making my life just as miserable as he'd done before.

Even my other friends received what most people would consider to be cold, callous treatement. I don't remember smiling at them all that often. I never went out of my way to socialize with them, to encourage them, to converse with them at all. But still, those people I had tied myself with, those four other individuals I had lashed my fate to during the crises that fell upon our world, were people I would gladly die for. I did care - I cared so much for those people that it frightened me, considering my abhorred luck with maintaining those I let my heart open up towards in my life - but my actions towards them were what they were, and nothing could change that. Indeed, sometimes I got the feeling that I was more harsh on them than anyone else I dealt with; that harshness was namely to drive the seriousness of our situations home to their odd little minds and make them strive towards the goal ofliving to see yet another day. I wanted them to go on. I wanted to live with them.

That's why it killed me to hear them die, to see them murdered. To walk into that ballroom and see their corpses scattered about. To walk beside Zell's still body, his lips blue and his eyes staring without focus at the ceiling above. To slip in the blood that had poured from Irvine's chest, spilled across the floor like paint from an overturned can. To carefully avoid traipsing on Quistis' hair that had spilled free of her bun, her face hidden from view by her falls of bangs that were stained ruby by life's liquid.

To pass their dead bodies was almost as terrible as gathering Rinoa's still, heartless frame into my arms so I could sob my apologies in her blood-matted hair.

Cloud was like my friends that I had lost. He was a person I desired to keep alive, that I would criticize and ridicule within an inch of his life to get him focused on the situation around him or get him properly riled so he wouldn't put himself at risk by tra-la-laing happily around potentially dangerous circumstances.

But when he was sleeping, when he was as sweet and innocent as Rinoa, I couldn't help but be gentle. All the harsh demeanor I would show him otherwise couldn't make itself known despite my greatest efforts.

I'd have no problem kicking Cid firmly if he started mewling in his sleep.

I couldn't help but just sit back and watch Cloud, fascination burning in my mind as I pondered what it was he could possibly be dreaming about. I couldn't help but reach out and lightly caress his brow, sweeping his bangs away so I could watch the twitching of his eyes underneath his closed lids and the slight furrowing of his pale eyebrows.

"Hey, lover boy, you gonna start our descent any damned time soon?"

I nearly jumped out of my chair, my heart bursting into a panicked run before I smoothly turned and focused my most bland stare on the boxer-clad pilot that had just shoved his head through the hatch between the cockpit and the engine room. "Of course," I replied, my voice carrying its practiced flat tone. "I've got another seven minutes until we're in range, Cid. Calm yourself."

He snorted heavily before lifting a crunched cigarette box to his face and shaking it a few times. Gripping the butt of one of his wrinkled sticks of tobacco between his lips, he threw the box back into the engine room he'd been using as his home. "I'm perfectly fucking calm, Leon. Just makin' sure you ain't so enraptured with sleepin' beauty there that you're gonna crash us into the surface."

I glared as his lips turned with a wry grin even as he lit his cigarette with a lit match handily given to him by the Shadow. "I'm paying attention to our approach. Why do you suggest that I'm... wait a minute. Did you call him 'sleeping beauty'?"

Cid just sneered at me. "You think that, don't'cha?"

I huffed quietly as I turned and laid my hands on the controls, truly taking note for the first time in hours how close we actually were to the planet we were approaching. Hell, I could see a perfect landing spot - right in the middle of a large green field. Tweaking our approach slightly, I angled towards that grassy plain and adjusted the curvature of our parabolid approach to limit the heat buildup along our shielding during reentry. "You assume too much, Cid."

"Come off it, Leon," he chuckled as he marched in, wiping his hands off on a rag handed to him by his dark little helper. Bending over near the pile of crap we'd shoved into the back corner of the cockpit, he routed around before righting himself and shaking his pants straight. "We all know you're head over heels for the kid."

My grip tightened on the wheel.

"Been observing you long enough to tell the difference in how you treat him compared to everyone else. Won't say that I'm takin' all too kindly to havin' the two of you lusting after each other in the damned gummi, but won't say I disapprove either. Know how you were when I picked you up. I think Spiky there can do you some good. And it might be possible that you could do him some good, too. He's got a ton of emotional baggage he can use a carrying buddy for."

"Sephiroth?" I muttered as I pressed in on the wheel, beginning our descent.

"Well, that's one of 'em. Aerith, too, considerin' that he was too late to save her from the Shinra General when he done killed her. And before you ask, don't bother. We don't know how the fuck it is she's alive. Something about being shit out of the Lifestream so the Planet's heart is being preserved while its trapped in darkness or some monkey shit like that," he stated as he shuffled into his pants and started digging for his shirt and his boots.

I just shrugged. Didn't sound too far-fetched to me.

Go through a Sorceress War, then get back to me with stuff that's supposed to rock my world. Or how about some time compression? Maybe go stare at Lunatic Pandora for awhile. Or get a Garden to fly.

After he'd finished getting himself dressed and snapped his goggles onto his head, Cid flopped himself down into the chair I had been sitting in when we'd started our arduous little trip, apparently happy to let me continue our approach and land the gummi. "So, care to tell me why you're so damned focused on getting Vincent? Seems kind of odd that you of all people's so concerned with that."

A slight turn of my head to acknowledge him with my eyes retaining their focus on the displays before me, I huffed. "We need another point of view into the fiasco that's ripping apart the universe. I want an intelligent opinion. Also, the fact that this Shadow's here brings to mind questions of whether or not others who'd fallen to darkness can be restored. Tifa, Barret and Red first made me question the possiility - the Shadow's appearance brought that curiosity to be fully realized. I want to know if it's actually probable for something to slip through from behind a potentially closed door."

"Because then your buddies might stand a chance of living? Maybe even making it over, even if they're like the little twerp we're haulin'?"

I was silent and still for a few moments before I let myself nod a soft affirmation.

"Then why not look for them instead?"

I felt rather than willed myself beginning to chew my bottom lip. Truth be told, it was because of Cloud's miserable recollections upon the arrival of three of his friends that Vincent and Reeve never made it that I was so focused on them. That those were the only ones of his gathering of loved ones that were missing.

I wanted to find him for Cloud.

I had figured Reeve would be a long shot that stood as much of a chance of being in the land of the living as my friends, those who's corpses I'd stepped around and held that fateful day when my world had vanished. He was at the center of the calamity that struck Cloud's world.

But with Vincent's position being unknown, there was at least some small chance that my theory of people being able to reemerge from darkness without their world being restored would be proven. Selphie could possibly be alive - she'd been swallowed by a column of darkness, not ripped to shreds by the Heartless. Seifer could possibly exist in the realm of light - I'd never found his corpse, no matter how desperately I'd searched for the visiting ex-Knight.

"Because I think that this 'Vincent' of yours might be more helpful," I finally replied, my voice steady as I bent the truth considerably.

Cid snorted his snort of 'I don't believe you for a momeent' before finally letting it drop, allowing silence to tumble back over us once more.

With a grunt as I pressed a bit harder on the wheel in my hands to accelerate our descent towards the planet towards the planet we'd been aiming for, I steeled my gaze on the ground so very far below. "Why do you assume I like Cloud?" I grumbled, my mind still firmly gripping the tangent the wily pilot had decided to bring up.

"As said, been watchin' you. You're kind of obvious about it, if a guy knows what to look for. Don't worry yourself. Cloud's too fucking dense to notice if you don't want him knowin'."

I almost breathed a sigh of relief before I caught myself and kept my face in its schooled stony expression.

"Cloud likes you too. He fuckin' fauns over you when you're not lookin'. Checks you out like a lusty little schoolgirl."

That, for some reason, finally made me lose it. "Cid, will you shut up?" I snapped, ripping my gaze away from my panels and my displays to focus a harsh glare at the older man.

Holding his hands up defensively, he smirked and chuckled. "Sure, sure. Don't mind me." He then turned in his seat, facing the aft end of the ship and the small room that rested behind us. "Hey, you! Get your worthless shadowy butt in here and sit down before I tape ya to the chair!"

"Cid, he doesn't understa-"

I blinked as I caught a reflective view of the little Shadow ambling into the cockpit, hopping into the chair and tethering himself in place.

"Shit, he doesn't understand. Of course he don't. He just gets the tone of voice. Just like a puppy!" Cid cackled.

"You're sick," I noted as I pressed the ship towards the planet.

He simply snickered at me before reaching over and harshly shoving Cloud's shoulder.

I felt my eyes narrow considerably, willing the smoking man to burst into flames.

"Yo, Spiky! Wake your ass up. We're 'bout to land."

Cloud looked groggily up at Cid before yawning heavily and turning himself in his chair. Fastening his seatbelt properly, he smacked his lips a few times before nodding. "Sure thing," he muttered, his voice thick and dazed with the remnants of sleep. Moments later he glared at his wing, grumbling so softly under his breath that even my sharp hearing was unable to comprehend what he was saying before he willed the leathery limb to vanish. A few sparkling crackles of yellow energy and a wince accompanied by a grimace from him and he was as ordinary as myself and Cid, the only exceptions to such human meekness being his glowing eyes and his gravity-defying hair.

Shaking my head as the two blonds finally got correctly situated, I pushed the ship into the atmosphere and gripped the wheel for dear life as it rattled its way through turbulence. The gummi proved to be more able than I'd given it credit for being, though. It rocketed through the atmosphere without problems, only losing a few chunks of colorful heat shielding and a couple pieces of our battered aft end. Soon enough I had the landing gear of the small craft set solidly upon terra firma and Cid was out of his chair, his grandiose spear gripped in his left hand while unlatching the main hatch. In the mean time, Cloud found his clothes and got dressed.

I tried not to stare as he slipped his pants on over his thin, shapely hips and began to tuck his shirt in before pulling tightly on his belt to hold the articles in place, his actions oddly captivating. It wasn't as if staring at his mostly nude body, eyes roving over the faded remnants of scars and well toned muscles wasn't invigorating enough, my mind was now chortling that this was like a strip tease in reverse and almost just as alluring.

A snort escaped my nostrils before I hastily shoved my errantly wandering thoughts into the darkest recesses of my depreciated brain and rose from my chair. After all, I needed to get dressed as well. No good wandering outside in nothing but my boxers.

As I joined Cloud in the task of finding days-disregarded clothing, the old pilot stepped outside.

Moments later we heard his startled yelp and saw his blond head vanish from sight.

Cloud and I looked at one another before hastily yanking our assorted clothing on, him grabbing his shoulder guard in his left hand and the hilt of that oversized monstrosity he calls a sword in the other. I forwent trying to find the jacket I'd packed, just remembering to snatch Griever and Lion Heart before I burst into a run, my heavy boots right at Cloud's heels.

He suddenly stopped with a screech.

I barely managed to stop before plowing into him. Looking over his shoulder, I felt my eyes widen as I stared into a strangely suddenly appearing abysmal hole.

The Shadow that had been chasing us wasn't so quick to stop himself as I was. The solid thwack of him running into my legs upset my balance.

With a combined scream we fell into the huge black hole before us.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Review replies: 

Shadow Cat17: Well, if my tiny hint about the planet's identity in this chapter didn't clue you in, the next chapter should make it blatently obvious. Mwa ha ha. Glad you liked that last chapter! Hope you like this one!

Dark Mog: Yeah on the 'stereotypically male' nudity to avoid laundry - that's why I call most've my buddies before visiting. Nothing quite beats glancing into an apartment and seeing dangling man. Geh. Anyway, glad you liked the content of the last chapter (and neh, you might wanna check out the optional chapter. No plot points - just gratuitous smut)! And hope this one clarified Leon's thought processes behind the Vincent hunt. The reaction of our resident ex-Turk should be marvelously funny when they meet again. Neh heh heh. Oh, and on the subject of the Org babes we love to love and hate to see get mangled, expect them to have a few appearances. After all, this story does tie KH1 to KH:CoM. I promise I'll do my damnedest not to butcher Zexie and Lex. I'm replaying the Riku mode as I sit between chapters to refresh my brain.

littlekittykat: Eh heh, no worries about the age. Been legal for quite some time. And alcohol is good! Yes, goooood... I just have to remember to have designated drivers, is all. So I'll be around to write this thing until its completion, whenever that'll be. :)

Li the Twilight Knight: (dances around) David Bowie is SO FREAKING HAWT! Especially in his tights and his support cup! (cackle) Alright, seriously now. Actually, there's no going serious after thoughts of David dancing with a baby and muppets. I have to stop now. I'm laughing too hard and staring at my VHS collection too appreciatively. Thanks for the birthday shout-out!

DarkStarPhoenix: Well, my damned email account on the ship filtered the stuff I sent from my hotmail account, so I never got your poems at work. (sniff) But it should be delivered in, say, a week. Sometimes stuff gets locked out for a month when the computer geeks who crash the network regularly (attempting to maintain it, they claim) mess stuff up beyond repair. But anyway. Hope you liked your Leon POV! He's always so... interesting to grapple. Neh heh. Nope, this ain't the 'Black Hole' world. 'fact is, that doesn't really feature a planet - it's just, well, a giant black hole. You'll see when the next Sora chapter comes up. Heh. Glad you're liking the fluffiness! Grip it while you can - things are gonna get rather demented from here on out for awhile. (evil little cackle)

The One Who Creeps You Out: Well, I was planning on every world being Disney. There's going to be a very, very slight deviation to that - not for Sora and company, but for Leon and crew. And yep, you're correct in your assumption over the Shadow's identity. :) Huzzah! Glad you've been liking this fic, and hope you continue to do so!

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Mwa ha ha! Review, por favor? (cringes as the plushie breaks forth with much more menacing cackling. "MWA HA HA HA! SUBMIT!") Yeah. (tired sigh) What he said. 


	26. Warning

Once again, last updates for awhile (I'll try to get the Sora chapter out before we take off). We're going out to sea. Again. Won't be back for a little over a full week, so no updates for probably 2 weekends. Damned topsiders need to stay qualified, and new F/A-18F pilots need practice landing their silly planes on top of our carrier. Craptastic, I say. Gr. But expect at _least_ two new chapters when I return –Cid's got a new chapter already typed, and I'm finally prepared to push out a chapter from the new POV, which is designed to fully flush out the tie between KH and KH:CoM. Let's give a brief huzzah for the Organization! If I get my new copy of a game I need (takes a moment to curse her ex-husband for taking off with her CD so she can't replay it at the moment) before I leave, I can get some serious work done. If not, oh well. The fic will stagnate for a few days while I pound my way through upon return to land. (will be faster than my mashing through FF8, seeing as I won't be spending ten freaking hours drawing and refining magic like a mad little maniac to get my favorite angsty lion kitten 100 of every single available spell and its 'ra' upgrade and ending up with a level 33 Squally before I even bother thinking about stepping off of Balamb to meet (cringe) Rin-ho-a and her little band of merry rebels. I am _so_ going to get my ass handed to me by Ultimecia. And the Weapons. They're going to be freaking level 100 by the time I get around to them at this rate. Crap. I hate the FF8 'the monsters are going to level _with_ you, you lucky jackass!' system sometimes. Yeah, you can draw cool shit when the monsters are at higher levels, but still!)

At least I've finished pounding through Riku's story again in Chains of Memory so I've got some serious scripting down. Now to go through the utter wankage of the Sora story again. Yay, Marluxia. (cries miserably) I _hate_ the Sora half! Why can't he just be a great ass-pounder like Riku? (hentai. Mind out of gutter. Now.) Little twerp. I _so_ need to get him the One Winged Angel keyblade. (grump) But I need the original Axel script and the other Org members so I can flesh out my newest chapter. (takes a moment to glomp Ansem plushie to substitute for lack of Zexion to cling to like a whiny onna and Lexaeus to toss in with him in some dark basement room – those two are _so freaking together_ it's painful. Gaw. Can we be any more obvious, Square/Disney? Thanks for making my eyes bleed. I'm happy with the path my demented little imagination ran in, though, so no complaining, really. Just sarcasm. I mean, come on… the constantly at one another's sides no matter what until the bitter end? The sudden thrust by Zexion to eliminate Riku once Lexaeus is gone? And of course, one of my favorite moments that had me squeeing and rolling my eyes at the bluntness of it all: 'Zex: Let's observe a little longer, then speak with Vexen.' 'Lex: But Vexen despises Marluxia. Think of the mess it would create...' 'Zex: That's why Vexen must be told. Better he clean up the mess than _us_.')

(If it weren't for the fact that the game's on GBA, the sprites are limited in their movements and blatant ass grabbing isn't portrayed in videogames, I would have easily pictured Zexion tossing his arms around Lexaeus and snuggling him with that proclamation. SO easily pictured that. Am I the only one?)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) Additional A/Ns are located below. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 26  
The Heartless – Warning

It was an unexpectedly harsh landing.

Fortunately I had some cushioning.

Dazed and confused by the sudden and rather erratic change in my scenery, I stared around our landing area. We had been in the gummi. The old blond had vanished with a scream. The other two ran out. I took off after them.

At first what I'd seen was a pleasantly blue sky with puffy white clouds and a glittering sun overhead. My black feet were tromping through thick green grass.

Then I barreled right into the brunet's leather-clad legs.

They both screamed as they fell forward. I toppled right in after them, my momentum carrying me without me having a chance to stop.

As we fell, I'd watched the walls of the extensive hole that'd appeared. They were dirt, cracked and craggy with roots sticking out of them at odd intervals.

Then we passed a clock.

A clock, a chair, a picture, a rug, another clock, a chandelier.

We were toppling down a hole, flying past furniture on our way to its inevitable termination.

Suddenly there was a loud thud and an exhalation followed immediately by another thud and a cry. I landed next.

Looking down, I stared at my landing site.

I was seated firmly on the leather-clad brunet's bottom.

Hopping off, I turned and cocked my head, taking in the unusual site of my two companions.

The blond was on the ground, his face towards the sky we'd fallen away from, his legs and arms splayed completely to his sides. His face was an interesting shade of red.

The brunet was laying right on top of him, his face all but mashed into the blond's crotch and his legs splayed as well, straddling the spiky-haired man's head.

With much shouting and I imagine much cursing, they hastily scrambled apart and regained their footing. As they segregated themselves, I looked around the round room we'd fallen in.

Delicate little patches of flowers grew where the sun's light was able to reach them, their colors brilliant against the solid brown floor. A round rug of red and black marked the exact center of that circular cavern we were situated in. A long tunnel snaked away from us, bending off into the distance. The walls that were near us were surprisingly smooth, offering no chance to climb up and out of the eternally long hole we'd toppled down. As far as I could determine, while I might easily escape by going two-dimensional and scampering up the flat walls, the people I traveled with would be forever trapped. We had to find another way out.

Curious, I shuffled down the tunnel. I barely heard shouts and tromping boots chasing me.

I blinked as I came upon a huge green door. It was open, revealing a red door. That red door revealed a blue door. A yellow door stood open. Sticking my head through, I peered into another room and finally caught sight of the old blond I'd been helping in the ship for the journey through space. I dashed ahead to greet him even as I heard the ones who'd followed me shout again.

The old blond turned sharply, his eyes first meeting me then lifting to set their gaze on the people who were struggling to get in through the small passage. As they began to converse, I explored the room.

A pair of chairs, a bed, a grandfather clock, a bunch of pictures, a fireplace, some lamps on the walls and the ceiling, and a pedestal-like table with a single chair scooted up to it were the most remarkable features. Those, and a little tiny door. Stooping I looked at it.

The bright gold doorknob was snoozing away. Lifting a claw, I debated whether or not I should poke at it. After all, it seemed to be the only other exit from the room we were inhabiting.

I heard a rough chuckle from above. Stopping before I followed my instinctual longing to wake the slumbering doorknob, I turned sharply and looked around. The three people I was traveling with had fallen silent and were looking around too, trying to find the source of the strange laugh.

My eyes set their gaze on a floating purple cat's head. It was bobbing through the air, a wild grin on its face. Then it started to sing.

"'Twas brillig, and the slithy tove

Did gyre and gimble in the wave;

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe."

I stared with confusion as the cat's head faded away, leaving naught but its chuckling in the air.

"Do you not understand?"

I almost fell over as the words clearly formed in my brain. The others were scratching their heads and resuming their conversation. They apparently didn't understand the song either, but for some odd reason they weren't hearing the continuation of the voice. What in the name of-

"Listen with your heart."

My… heart…?"

"'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves"

…. T'was darkness, and the heartless dead….

The words, nonsense to begin with, slowly formed meaning, the sensation driven from something both far away and yet deep within me. Was it my heart speaking to me? Was it calling from the dark Kingdom that had absorbed it?

"Did gyre and gimble in the wave;" Did trap and trample in the wave;

"All mimsy were the borogoves," All mad-ones were the shadow-lead,

"And the mome raths outgrabe." And the Looking Glass saved.

The Looking Glass…?

"Heed well, little one whose heart has yet to vanish."

The Looking Glass was the way out, wasn't it…? It was what would save us…?

Without any further hesitation, I ran to the fireplace and stared up towards the hearth.

Where there had been nothing before now shined a huge mirror in an ornate frame.

Going two-dimensional, I slipped up the fireplace's brick structure to stand on the hearth. Staring at the mirror, I caressed it lightly with my hand.

I was quite stunned when my hand slipped through its hard surface.

Moments later, as the trio I was traveling with grabbed me to drag me away from the mirror, white light flooded over all of us. Then everything went dark.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: Alrighty then. The 'translation' of the song the Cheshire Cat sings (and yes, that song came directly out of the Disney movie) is obviously my own creation. You try coming up with an almost sensible meaning to utter nonsense and see how well you do. 

No merry happy Wonderland for _this_ story! (snigger) And if you're wondering where I'm getting my inspiration for this place now, try three sources – 'Through the Looking Glass' (as in the book), the old-time television-special movie 'Alice in Wonderland' (live action and stuff, folks. And she does go through the looking glass) and… American McGee's 'Alice.' You may scream that this is a derivation from my 'Disney-only because this is Kingdom Hearts and KH is so Disney-only it's sickening' bend, but it's really not – Disney only touched half of the original tale. I like the other half. It was more serious, less of an exploration in childhood innocence and humor. And I love what American McGee did to Wonderland – it's actually a very convincing sequel that stays lovingly true to the original story, following as well as anything ever could. It's freaking demented though, dude. REALLY freaking demented. And scary. And much more fitting for Cloud, Leon, Cid and our resident Shadow to muck around in.

Yeah, just wait until we get to see the Cheshire Cat again. (gleeful shudder) Play 'Alice' and you'll understand. Mwa ha ha!

Oh, BTW. If you're ever at all curious about my progress doing things like writing future chapters that have yet to appear due to time constraints and editing (or what other stories I might happen to have in progress), or why there's delays in posting, you can always hit my profile. I try to update that every time I do anything on ff. net, and indeed have the capability to update that when we're at sea – I just don't have the ability to upload documents when we're trapped on the briny blue.

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Review replies: 

Dark Mog: Hey, thanks again for the typo alerts! Went pouring through the last chapter and found it rather embarrassing. Sheesh. First off, that laptop sucked – the 'b' key stuck like nuclear-grade duct tape to forearm hair and required veritable punching, plus I was pleasantly drunk while visiting my bestest buddy in the whole wide world. XD Anyway, no problems with the character ranting! I do it on multiple occasions. Organization's awesome. Larxene makes me laughs myself stupid. Vexen makes me want to throw my GBA, though, as his stupid laugh over those tiny speakers is more grating than fingernails over chalkboards after ten freaking minutes of throwing cards at his ass and breaking his stupid 'chase you around the platform with icy spikes' combo crap. Never got to play it on a Gamecube – does it really make it that much easier? (drools as possibilities) And glad you liked the gratuitous smut! I love writing that stuff. Especially at work. Neh heh. I liked the image of Cloud trying to bury himself in his own wing. And Leon's just a fluffy-wuffy-kitty-witty-poo! (cries as her imaginary VR self is pummeled into paste by fluffy-wuffy-kitty-witty-poo's giant freaking gunblade from hell that mashed Sora out of the air every 15 seconds during the 49th round of KH2's Hades Cup) Look forward to more Cid. He's pinnacle in the future FF character chapters in the land they've gone to, seeing as how the others are going to be dealing with… eh… issues. (evil cackle)

littlekittykat: Life screw-y, eh? (laughs) Well, in my job, alcohol makes it almost bearable to go back day after day. Nothing like having dorks from Washington glare over your shoulder every freaking minute of the day, waiting for you to do something wrong while you're in port. That's the advantage of the sea – no Naval Reactors monitors. (shudder) Alchy is the nuke's best friend. (grin) But to each their own, I say. (shrugs) I can respect not liking it. And back to the story, Cid Construction's hired its newest little helper. He's good at schmoozing and making copies, and lighting the boss' cigarettes. Cid's motivated. Leon's in for a world of trouble. Neh heh heh.

DanteMoon: Hey, glad you like the story! It's always such a gleeful experience to get a new reviewer! Yeah, I never intended for chapter 24.5 to lead to chapter 25 like that, but looking over the material I see it now. (sheepish grin) I wrote 25 first – decided to write the smut once I'd finished up with 27, and decided to plop it in after 24. Feh. Convenient that. Anyway, as said, glad you like it, and hope you continue to enjoy this little story!

DarkStarPhoenix: Yeah, I'd love it if you'd resent your poems. If you want to, you can send them to my shipboard email address as we'll be out to sea until at least the 13th (remove the spaces) – hoernewm roosevelt. navy. mil And glad you liked the Leon POV. Leon's so damned easy to write. Helps that he's only a couple years my junior. (sagely nod) Hope you did well on your exam, BTW!

Manders1953: Hey, it's alright! Better reviewing late than never, I say! Oh, and to explain Cloud, due to the choices I always made with him, he came off exactly as I write him when I played FF7 last (did that during the 6 month deployment because after beating KH1 and KH:CoM I had nothing to do with myself while waiting to pull in and buy KH2 – also had to scar my FF7 'Cloud is SO STRAIGHT' friends by making possible the watching of the Honey Bee Inn suggested anal raping and the date with Barret). And the reason I see him as being so naïve is simply because of FF8 – Squall is one seriously messed up mental-case; Cloud doesn't have half of his baggage, therefore can be seen as 'naïve' by Squall quite easily as he simply isn't nearly as broken as Balamb's lion. Cloud has his issues – Squall's issues mash them into paste with a pinky, plant a gunblade in the mashed mess to serve as a grave marker then go off to sulk in a corner for the next nine decades. Nomura-sama went a bit overboard when he blasted a character with angst in FF8 – in my ever so humble opinion, if he weren't a freaking videogame character and was a real person, Squall probably would've been committing suicide by the time he would have been saving the world. Mental. Case. But back to Cloud – I hope I haven't been portraying him as hyper. He's not really so much. Barret the air-punching gun-arm doof's a lot more hyper than him. And Yuffie the Pixie-Stik queen. And Cait Sith with its moogle controlled by Reeve 'the demented future world dictator in my view' Tuesti. And so on and so forth. That hyperness bleeds into his surroundings, but isn't really him. I've tried not to make him that way – maybe his internal monologue is a bit rambling and goofy, but his outward actions shouldn't be hyper (well, his pacing around airships is taken from FF7 where you run around like a manic monkey and talk to everyone all the time. And his humming of march music? He was a parading doof in FF7, spinning his sword for display – if he liked fancy parade crap enough to be 'fluent' with it when he first infiltrated the soldiers' ranks, he can sure as hell hum march music (plus I think it's hilarious to have him humming the Mickey Mouse March). I sucked at that part, BTW. One of Cloud's grandest moments, facing entirely the wrong way in front of Rufus. Feh). He's just blushing and stomping around like a moron, not being a bouncing dweeb. And blushing's quite acceptable, I think – he's a bit bashful in FF7, after all. Being around sex-god-Leon's gotta be hard. As for stoicism? The humor in FF7 kind of mashes that – Cait Sith, the Turks and the watch checking before running, the dates, Yuffie, Zack's alluding conversations with him, the Golden Saucer and its dates, Wall Market, zipping around on your ass in snow, chocobo racing and bouncing around on their backs in celebration, et cetera, dude. (That humor's given some justification for his 'goofy' behavior, humming and what not, I guess.) He's stoic, but not nearly so much as our lovely Balamb protagonist – compared to him, Cloud's a giddy little goober. And in the movie he's dealing with Aerith's death and the guilt of not having rescued her silly self, and believing that he'll never be forgiven for it hence his dour attitude – in KH she's very alive and well, so his reasons for being his sulky self in the movie got a bit obliterated. In KH2 he's more focused than sulky, in my humble opinion – Sephy's very much on the forefront of his midget mind, not 'woe-is-me, my-life-sucks-because-I'm-a-failure-without-a-number-and-no-clue-what-I-am, I-miss-Zack.' Now perhaps my reasoning makes sense, I hope? Also if you care to notice he's mostly stoic and quiet on the outside – his goofy sarcasm and forehead slapping's mostly internal monologue. Rather like Squally-boy. (nod nod) Any further questions, please feel free to ask! If you're willing to read the result of me blathering for many run-on sentences, I'm fully willing to explain myself. Even using game context, if curiosity draws me to it. (laughs, curtsies politely) Oh, and would respond to the story criticism, but my fingers are already bloody stumps from my Cloud explanation. (sheepish grin)

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So all being said and done, I'd greatly appreciate some reviews! They're like candy. The internet-posted version of a care package for poor starving authoress sailors! Make my underway happy! (hyper bounces before looking around her room, then grumbles as she resumes packing her sea bag and preparing to get underway while the plushie points at her and cackles manically) 


	27. Cygnus

Feh. Been so damned busy lately. But finally back in, and I do have three more chapters on standby (though one of those is optional, and won't be posted here on ff. net). Hope you enjoy! 

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 26  
The Keyblade Master – _Cygnus_

I stretched and yawned as we slid from normal outer space to hyperspace, our ship throttling forward sharply as it accelerated into that dimension that existed between ordinary space and time that was only accessible to gummi ships.

"I'm sure gonna miss 'em," Goofy said from behind me, wiping his large nose with a procured white hanky.

"Yeah, me too. But at least we can rest easy knowing that Elliott will keep Passamaquoddy safe from any more Heartless that decide to show up. He knows exactly what to look for now, too. With his display against that sea monster, I'm pretty sure he can handle anything that pops into that world," I reassured the bipedal dog, reaching over to clap his shoulder. "And Pete has a great family now. The fish are back thanks to us driving away the Heartless, the Leviathan's been sent back to where it came from, and the lighthouse's light is burning strong. That world is definitely better off than it was before."

"And we got the keyhole locked, too," Donald quacked from the pilot chair, glancing back to give us a big smile with his oversized bill. "You noticed how strong the light was coming from that world when we took off?"

"We definitely got there in the nick of time," I confirmed. "One more world saved. It does feel rather good."

"So, where're we off to next?" Goofy inquired.

I shrugged. "Jiminy had a great idea. Hollow Bastion. We should report in and tell Aerith that we got there in time – you know she's probably been really concerned. She's always so dedicated towards everyone else's happiness, you know. It'll please her to know that the world we went to is a safe, peaceful place once again."

"And you know Yuffie'll love the stories about the dragon," the duck interjected with a chuckle.

"She'll probably try to convince Cid to fire up a gummi ship so she can go visit it," I laughed.

"Speaking of ships, our gummi needs some tuning up," Donald said, scratching the underside of his bill. "Cid'll curse at us, but you know he'll readily help."

"Maybe by now Leon's found something out concernin' why the Heartless're still poppin' up despite us lockin' up all those keyholes, too!" Goofy exclaimed.

"Which is why we're going back to Hollow Bastion like Jiminy suggested, you big palooka," Donald huffed. "Why'd you ask in the first place?"

"Well…" Goofy stumbled.

I shrugged and smiled merrily at them as they looked at each other, Goofy scratching his head along the edge of his hat and Donald glaring. "You guys lay off each other. After all, the gummi runs off happy faces, right?"

"Yer right, Sora!" Goofy said with a merry grin.

Donald just muttered under his breath as he turned to his controls, gripping the wheel tightly in his white feathery hands and pressing in a bit to lower our angle of travel.

Turning my attention out towards the tunnel of hyperspace we were pounding through, I idly watched the colors stream by. It was brilliant, bright, flooded with light and peaceful as can be. The stars that existed outside of hyperspace let their light bend into various arrays of vivid color, rainbows that bent and wove through our tunnel. It was like traveling through a tube filled with bright paint that swirled without reason or care, staining an almost empty white atmosphere outside of our vessel. I hardly blinked as we zipped past a huge purple asteroid that tumbled idly through the space we traveled through. After all, sporadically appearing asteroids weren't that much of a rarity in hyperspace – for some reason I could never get explained to me, they were frequent targets to be trapped by the hyperspace tunnels gummi ships produced, being sucked into our in-between dimension from nearby normal space.

A second asteroid swiftly followed by a third and a forth and a colorful snarl from the duck at the gummi's controls did cause me to blink. Not only did it encourage me to blink, it also encouraged me to look forward.

I gasped loudly.

The space ahead was simply filled with asteroids!

"Donald! Need a hand?"

"Get the weapons!" the duck shouted.

Nodding, I slid my chair along its track and pressed myself towards the gummi's weapon controls. Gripping the joystick in my right hand, I wriggled it a few times and nodded. Then I reached over and tapped the big 'L' shaped key that would bring up my heads-up display so the radar could show me everything in my cannons' target range.

Goofy hid behind his large hands as I gritted my teeth together and glowered at the glowing blue display that popped up over my section of window. "C'mon, show me something!" I snarled.

The radar warmed up and finally displayed my surroundings on the grid that was hovering translucently between me and the forward window of our gummi. I swallowed nervously as I stared at that display rather than the looming view of asteroids that hovered just outside of our ship.

The blips that I could identify as asteroids were tightly surrounding us, and from what I could tell were only getting denser the further we traveled in that particular direction of hyperspace.

"Donald, you sure this is a good idea? There're more of them the further we go!"

"It's the way back to Hollow Bastion," he snorted. "If you've got a different destination, now's the time to tell me!"

"No, Hollow Bastion's where we need to go. But the path is blocked! You sure this is the right way?" I inquired. "You couldn't have picked a wrong path by accident?"

"Of course I'm sure it's the right way! Planets move, you know! It's called an orbit! So our path back is different this time!"

Rather than get the duck even more riled with continued questioning, I nodded. "Alright. Then something really big is going on to clutter up space like this," I conceded.

"Stop talking and start firing!" the duck ordered.

With a huff and a shrug I obeyed. My thumb mashed down on the red button on top of my joystick, activating the _Excalibur's_ cannons. Waving the stick to direct my cannons' firing, I narrowed my eyes as I watched the blasts of light stream into space amongst those asteroids.

One hit, two hits, three and four and one asteroid finally exploded into bright purple dust, leaving its core, a special star-shaped gummi power-stone that instantly assimilated with our ship upon impact to restore our fuel cells to their maximum capacity and our shield gummi to full power. I nodded at the duck's choice to pilot over the remains despite the somewhat greater danger it put us in, placing us directly in the path of more ambling asteroids.

"Sora! To yer left!" Goofy shouted.

"Oh geez!" I gasped as I noticed our wing approaching dangerously close to a lumbering violet rock. Jerking the stick, I fired as rapidly as I could mash my thumb down onto that trigger.

The ship shuddered violently as one of our Aeroga-G wings was struck and gripped solidly by the calmly floating rock.

Donald squawked in anger, nearly losing his grip on the wheel as it was forcibly wrenched towards the asteroid that caught our wing. Jerking it harshly back, he grimaced as the sound of our wing being ripped away from the ship tore through the gummi. As the ship listed heavily, Donald hurriedly spun the wheel back and forth to regain some sense of balance before he released the wheel with one hand and reached for our acceleration lever.

"Hold on!" he quacked before slamming down on it.

We were plastered back into our seats as the gummi burst forward with a sudden jolt of speed. Peeling myself off the back cushion of my chair and prying my eyes completely open, I resumed firing.

Slamming down on my trigger as quickly as I could, I wasn't once able to land enough hits to blow any other asteroids to dust. We were entirely dependent on the duck's piloting.

Donald skillfully swerved the gummi back and forth, dipping between murderously huge rocks in scandalously small areas. The space around us flickered blue almost constantly as the shield protected us from the space debris and small chunks of asteroids that I was managing to blast away from the huge obstacles that stood in our way to make passageways for us. A few times it shuddered and sparked brilliantly as our ship, a bit lopsided in its handling, scraped alongside of the asteroids we were trying to slip between.

As much as I admired the duck's considerable abilities with piloting the small ship, I soon came to realize that there was no way we'd be able to penetrate the almost solid wall of asteroids that was soon to be blocking our path. No matter how quickly I could fire our cannons, I wouldn't be able to punch a hole through fast enough. And while lasers would really help and make quick work of making a tunnel for us to pass through, I….

I'll admit it. I'm not good enough with the keyboard that my left hand's supposed to control to select weapons that quickly. And I always have to look down at my hand to see what I'm typing, taking my eyes off the heads-up display and delaying my firing of my cannons. That's why I mostly stuck with the Thundaga-Gs instead of playing with anything else, and why we only had one laser installed on the _Excalibur_. Truth be told, I wanted to replace it with another cannon – we'd just forgotten to do it last time we'd been in the gummi garage.

"Donald! It's getting too tight! I can't open a passage quickly enough for us to get through!" I shouted in warning.

"I got it!" he growled even as he wrenched the wheel as violently as he could to our port side while slapping his feathery palm down on the huge red button that triggered our entry into and egress from the gummi's hyperspace tunnel.

The cockpit fell into darkness, all the brilliant coloration that filled hyperspace slipping away as the gummi slid from hyperspace into normal outer space, nearly spinning completely around with its power-slide that the duck had initiated.

Gasping for breath, all of us sighing in relief, we looked as one out the front window.

As one, we screamed.

The asteroids were still there!

"Donald!"

The duck belted out with his squawking scream even as he twisted the wheel and jostled the acceleration lever, jetting a bit more controllably away from the wall before us.

We all panted as we narrowly escaped crashing into the tumbling dark rocks that lumbered through space.

"What the heck?" I grumped. "We aren't near any asteroid belts, are we?"

"Nope, sure ain't," Goofy said quizzically as he scratched his head. "Sure is strange to have so many asteroids in one place with there bein' no belt nearby, huh?"

"Yeah, sure is," I muttered as I stared out of the side window of our gummi, gazing at the huge stony objects.

"And it's weird that they're all traveling in the same directions," Donald grunted. "But I think I might have an answer for that."

"What's that?" I questioned.

Donald huffed as he slowly turned the wheel of the gummi, laying the acceleration stick a little further down to maneuver us away from the slowly spinning rocks that blocked our view. Goofy and I watched as our view out of the window on my side of the ship slowly panned over the dark asteroids, barely catching glimpses of light from between their massive forms.

We finally reached the edge of the large conglomeration of stones, freeing our view of space.

I sucked my breath between my teeth. "Holy sh-"

"Shucks! That's a black hole!" Goofy interrupted.

"Yeah. And we're trapped in its pull just like those asteroids," Donald grunted.

"WHAT?" Goofy and I simultaneously shouted.

Turning in his chair, Donald stared at me with huge, frightened eyes. "All that jetting around in hyperspace burned out a lot of our fuel, and with us getting hit by all the debris we burned a lot of our auxiliary power through the shields. That hit that took off our wing reduced our maneuverability. I'm afraid the gummi doesn't have enough power left in it to push us away – all I can manage is sideways travel, and even that's a struggle! You notice how slow the ship's responding?"

I gulped nervously. "How about one more full power burst, heading directly away from the black hole?"

"Don't know if we'll make it. And that'll leave us nothing for later," the duck argued.

"Later? Later, we're going to be in that hole!"

"Uh, guys," Goofy interjected, "there seems to be a place we could land. Maybe if we can land, we can let the gummi recharge and be able to get away later. Or maybe the landing site will have repair parts!"

We both blinked owlishly at one another before turning to the bipedal dog.

"Look here on the radar! There's somethin' right up ahead," Goofy said, pointing at my heads-up display. "And it don't seem to be movin' at all!"

We stared at my display, observing the perfectly stationary unidentified block that hovered right before the location of the huge space anomaly. "Hey, Donald, think we could use the computer to give us a close-up image of that blip?"

"Sure thing," Donald said with a nod, pulling a keyboard out from its storage space under his pilot's control consol. Staring intently at it, he began to pluck at the keys. "Hm," he intoned.

"I'll get out the instruction manual," I helpfully suggested as I started routing around in the gummi ship's glove compartment. After all, this was a ship directly from Disney Castle – I don't think they'd send anyone out without something to help. If it were a 'Cid-Special' I'd worry. That man expects everyone who gets behind the wheel of one of his 'precious babies' to know exactly what they're doing, so he almost never includes anything – emergency supplies, tools, spare parts, extra fuel, instruction manuals and the sort are all foreign material in a brand new ship from Cid.

I cheered as I found exactly what I'd been looking for. Looks like my suspicions about the constructors of Disney ships were correct. Though it was covered with dust from plenty of time of useless rest in its storage space, it was definitely present – and definitely had the most pastel cover I'd ever seen. A bright pink gummi superimposed on an eggshell blue sky with a smiley-faced bright yellow sun behind it? Sheesh.

Flipping rapidly through the manual, I found the index and swiftly looked up the pages that described how to properly use the ship's onboard computer. "Here we are," I calmly intoned, trying not to panic as we were facing inevitable doom in the crushing grip of a black hole. "Press the 'F1' key to begin."

I walked the duck step by step through the directions that told us how to bring the computer under direct user control. Then we plucked through sentence by sentence how to bring up a holographic display of our radar's desired target. It took a lot of patience and a few times rereading the procedure, but we finally got it.

First we got a holograph of a far off star before we'd figured out that we had put in an entry that was exactly one hundred and eighty degrees off of where we actually wanted to look. After sheepishly correcting our error, Donald pressed the 'enter' key.

We all stared in sheer awe as Donald completed the command on the keyboard and a large holograph image of the swirling black hole appeared in the center of our cockpit.

"Gawrsh, lookit the size of that thing!" Goofy breathed.

"Wow. The most destructive force in the universe. Not even light can escape its pull," I muttered, every fact from our quick lessons on astronomy that had been shoved into my skull by my teachers throughout my scholastic career bringing itself forward. "And no one knows if there's anything on the other side. I mean, they're supposed to be created by the collapsing of a star, right? But it's effectively a giant tunnel, leading to that star. There's tons of theories about what could be on the other side – another dimension, another segment of space, another aspect of consciousness and reality… but no one knows, because nothing has made it through."

"Nothing that we know of, anyway," Donald said with a slow shake of his head. "Or if anything, whatever's made it through certainly hasn't been able to call back and tell us anything!"

"It's rather awe inspiring," I said with a slight grin. "Just kind of wish we weren't so close. Rotten way to finish up our journey. The great keyblade master and his best friends crushed by a space anomaly trying to get back home after saving the worlds from the Heartless threat."

"Don't be so gloomy," Goofy said with a shrug. "After all, there's the landin' site! See that black thing right there? We still can land, see if we can fix the gummi, and maybe get ourselves away safely!"

I squinted as I looked at the holographic image. "Hey, Donald, think you can magnify that thing that Goofy's pointing out?"

"Sure thing. One moment," the duck quacked as he flipped through the gummi ship's instruction manual before punching at a few keys on his keyboard.

We watched as the image was magnified once, then twice. After a third time, we all gawked with unabashed amazement at what we were seeing.

It was a ship!

A strange ship, huge in size and looking something like a building made of support struts and random domes of metal and glass turned on its side. It was dark, black and looming before the brilliance that was the light-absorbing rift in space.

It certainly wasn't made of gummi blocks. Not a single speck of bright color could be seen anywhere on that vessel. It was just a shadowy gathering of metal pieces, so dark and ominous that it seemed to absorb more light from the surrounding area than the black hole itself.

Something about it gave me shivers up my spine. And not those good shivers of awe and wonder – terrible shivers of fear and dread.

It didn't seem to have any power to it at all – it was just laying like some great lump in space, unmoving and uncaring of the magnitude of the situation it was in. After all, it was right beside the single most cataclysmic event the universe could produce.

And….

It wasn't moving at all.

There _had_ to be some power to that thing!

"Donald, think you can land us on it?" I muttered.

"I can try," the duck said with a frown.

Goofy and I hurriedly ensured we were tethered securely in our seats as Donald edged the gummi towards that stationary target. We gulped simultaneously as the ship began to shake violently.

Grabbing harshly onto my chair's armrests, I looked with panicked eyes at the duck. "Donald!" I shouted for lack of anything better to do.

"Gravity's increasing! It's almost at the ship's threshold!" Donald squawked, hanging onto the wheel for all he was worth.

"Gawrsh, I don't know if we're gonna make it!" Goofy lamented loudly.

"Gravity's at maximum!"

I felt my teeth chatter in my skull, every joint in my body rattling violently as the ship shook horrendously through space. I heard everything that we had stowed falling and crashing throughout the segregated compartments of the gummi. I heard the very blocks that made up our ship shake, threatening to rip apart at their seams with the outside force applied to them by the proximity of the huge black hole. Closing my eyes, I prepared for the worst – the cold vacuum of space, the crushing embrace of death, the removal of any opportunity to keep my promise to Kairi. The absolute end to my search for Riku.

I pried my eyes open as the ship stopped with its horrible racket. "Wha…."

"Zero gravity," Donald breathed quietly. "I'm taking us in. There's a small landing pad before the biggest dome on that ship."

After Donald had gently put our ship down on the small landing pad and we'd made our quick egress through the surprisingly oxygenated passage between our hatch and the entrance to the odd metallic monster we'd set down upon, we looked around in awe even as we stomped our way through the halls.

Soon we came across a sliding door that whooshed aside to admit us. Looking at my companions I shrugged before stepping inside.

The elevator we'd entered slammed its door shut and whizzed us off to a predetermined location. With another whoosh the door opened and let us view the most technologically advanced control room I'd ever laid eyes on.

Huge arrays of computer screens reached for meters in each direction, each with a person clothed in black seated before it. A supreme view of the thick star clusters that were being swallowed by the black hole rested just outside of huge windows that plowed impossibly high. Stepping free of the elevator I looked around, my mouth gaping in obvious surprise.

"Ah, unexpected guests. Welcome. I am Doctor Reinhart," a voice called from before me.

I blinked and stared at the little old man with his wild hair, thick gray and brown beard and white lab coat.

Spreading his arms wide, he sneered at me. "Welcome aboard the _USS Cygnus._"

_-tbc-

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_

Review replies:

Dark Mog: Gaw, you're making me dance around in anticipation and lust to get my hands on the manga when it's available. Gr! I browsed for it online, but to no freaking avail. Got to read the first volume, but that's just about it. Feh. If you have the hair to cosplay Vexen, I stand in utter envy. I lopped mine short so I don't have to fuss with trying to keep my hair pinned up to meet Navy regulations – my hair's too fine to hold bobby pins or stay bound, so it always falls all over the place unless I put five pounds of hairspray on my head. My only cosplay experience is going as Hokuto-chan after a quick application of black hair dye and going as Heero Yuy one year when I decided 'the hell with it, a sports bra will mash 'em nearly flat.' (laughs) And I had to gather the guts to parade around in spandex. (holds head in shame) Not that I'm chunky, more like stick-built, but still – no matter the build, parading in spandex takes a certain level of insanity I barely meet at times. Oh, BTW, there's another smut chapter ready to be posted, if you're at all interested. Weird inspiration and hours of boredom at work. XP

DarkStarPhoenix: Ah, good job on your math exam! Feh, you people and your overly competitive attitudes. Not like I can judge – I wasn't in a selective school (yep! I'm a product of good ol' rotten Southern California public education! It's a miracle I can speak coherently at times) but we were just as cutthroat in the advanced placement program. I did know a girl who burst into tears because she got a 'B' one quarter. Yes, quarter. She had it bumped to an 'A' by the semester. Freak. I couldn't care less – and I still maintain that attitude. Makes me calm. (snigger) Quit'cher whinin'! 96 is damned good. :) Oh, and I looked at that last chapter – yeah, word-wise my review replies were infinitely longer than the chapter itself. Feh. Happens. The translation will make sense come the next few chapters in that world. :P

MaroonSorrow: Hey, glad you like it! And thank you so much for reviewing. More Cloud/Leon action is bubbling on the horizon, and our darling little Heartless is going to get _much_ more screen time for reasons to be explained. Ahhhh, no more 3 page limit on his chapter length for awhile. Thanks for the compliment, and hope you enjoyed the newest chapter! (Neh, why doesn't anyone go 'Gosh, I heart the Sora chapters!' Oh, I know it happens from time to time, but everyone loves the CL and Heartless so much more. (laughs) Poor Sora, so underappreciated.)

Shadow Cat17: Oh goodness. The whole 'summer' thing. Wow. Wish I still had that. (laughs) Work work work, no matter the time of year. Oh, the fun of being old. But anyway, at least you figured it out:) I love this place. Actually, I love being freaked out by where they are now. Been scaring myself silly playing this particular game again. You'll see later. Oh, and as for Leon and Cloud? I'm not going to force them to do anything they don't want to. And considering where they are and what's destined to happen, it's going to be a bit of time in the making. Glad you found their landing humorous – I'm certain someday they'll appreciate that position. (cackle)

scarletHuntress: Glad you love the fic! Thanks for the review!

* * *

Ahem. So I'm finally up to date with all the Sora crap. 'least for a little while. Huzzah! (plushie snarls, "This can not be!") Heh heh. Oh, but it can. Reviews, as always, are much appreciated! 


	28. Changes

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 28  
The Gummi Expert – Changes

Holy shit, but that threw me for a loop.

One second I was standing around in that little room with Cloud and Leon, having a pretty polite discussion over exactly what had happened to end us up in our apparently inescapable situation. In other words, they were trying to chew me out for falling down the damned 'lookit me, I appear outta no-fuckin'-where' hole and having them being forced to follow me. I told the lunk heads that it wasn't my damned fault that they were morons and fucking followed me down instead of just dropping a rope. Their damned faults that now all of us were trapped down here in this quaint stupid little room with its midget fucking stupid door and its stupid fucking sleeping doorknob that I was half hoping the damned little Shadow would poke to death to end its fucking racket. Maybe the Shadow could make it out of here by slithering up the damned walls, but we were certainly fucked and there weren't no way the stupid little Heartless was going to understand to go find a rope and toss it to us. Or maybe he'd try that, and forget to tie the other end up to something topside. Hell, no rope I had stored in the gummi was probably anywhere near long enough to go down that fucking hole with its floating furniture anyway. Maybe we could hope for flying monkeys to burst out of Cloud's ass and carry us away – that seemed just as probable as ropes and the Shadow saving our sorry rears.

Anyway, that was one second.

Next second Leon was staring at the little Shadow then lunging to stop him from touching random shit and getting himself into trouble. Cloud was hot on Leon's heels and I was right behind, trying to grab both the fucking morons before they went crashing into the mirror the Heartless was putting his grubby little hands on and got themselves sliced to ribbons by busted glass for the effort.

That's when things got really fucking weird.

Yeah, having everything going blindingly white then pitch black in the blink of an eye and feeling like I had a cast iron pan slammed down on the back of my skull still strikes me as really fucking weird, even after all the random shit that happened just a couple of years ago with Midgar and the Planet and all that bull. Especially when all those boggling sensations came from just grabbing onto Spiky the Magnificent the moment he done grabbed Leon's arm and the gunblade-slingin' idiot just set his hand on top the Shadow's wee head.

Fucking mirror flashed and we blacked out. Or at least I hope we all blacked out – it'd be fucking embarrassing if I was the only one who felt like he'd gotten clonked by Shera with her favorite kitchen tool and had a mouth full of dirt as a result of it.

Wait. Dirt?

It was almost more painful than the effort was worth to pry my eyes open. It was like trying to peel duct tape off my nuts, save the sensation was coming from my fucking eyeballs. The light that struck them was horrible, like itty-biddy needles being jabbed into them over and over without mercy. Fact was that it was so damned intense that I sucked a pained breath and was promptly rewarded with a nose full of dust and grime.

Snorting roughly, I bolted upright and rubbed at my nose.

Yeah, bad fucking move. I know.

After having my head plowed back into the dirt by whapping the back of my skull solidly into the low rocky overhang above me, I groaned in pain and let what had to be the most unmanly whimper to ever pass my lips since I was a melon-sized babe in diapers leak from my mouth. "Oh holy fuck," I simpered as I rubbed the back of my head, very slowly brining myself to my hands and knees once I'd finished massaging my scalp and ruefully groaning.

A quick glance to my right brought a grin to my pained face. At least I was able to confirm that I wasn't the only idiot that passed out. Cloud was still sucking dirt at my side, his blond spikes all mashed into the dirty brown earth, his body smashed on top of that ridiculously oversized chunk of crap he calls his sword and his barely clasped cloak covering him like a moth-eaten blanket.

I was met with disappointment when I found Leon, though. Looked like I wasn't going to be able to ridicule him to the cold side of hell for being a big baby too. Fact was, he was on his feet about a good meter away from me with his pasty-ass arms that don't look like they'd ever seen the light of day crossed over his white t-shirt-clad chest, glaring down at what had to be the mangiest, ugliest fucking critter I'd ever seen in my life.

Glancing up, I noted where the ceiling to the small crevice I was mashed into was and crawled out from under it, my hand finding a good grip on my spear that was off to my left and dragging it with me. Once free of the overhead obstacle I carefully got to my feet and dusted off my knees. With a scowl as I pulled my box of cigarettes from my back pocket and shook one free of its confines, I marched over to Leon even as I put that cigarette between my lips and stuffed the box back into its home. "What the fuck just happened?" I greeted as I found my lighter and lit my stick of marvelous relief. Ah, nicotine.

That fucking ugly critter turned its misshapen head to look at me with its big gleaming slit-pupil eyes. Its demented smile widened considerably, showing perfectly flat, glistening white teeth pressed together in some manic grimace that was supposed to be a grin. Huge triangular ears that looked more than a bit chewed apart twitched slightly, the left one's giant silvery hoop earring wiggling with the motion.

It almost looked kind of like a cat, now that I thought about it. A skeletal cat with its vertebrae clearly visible poking through its scrawny neck and from its skinny back, its ribs sticking out like xylophone keys, each bone of its elongated limbs painfully visible and a stick of a tail lashing around behind it. Also looked to have a good case of mange, what with its fur all patchy and rotted. The matted purple-gray fur sported some dark black tattoo work that formed into a strange rendition of stripes on its head that kind of reminded me of….

"Wait just a fucking second. Ain't that the cat we saw…."

"On the other side of the mirror? I believe so," Leon finally said, his voice cracked and harsh.

It was then that I finally really noticed the changes.

That cat was like death warmed over, very different yet eerily similar to the bounding happy fat purple head that was bouncing around in the air with its merry big round eyes with their spherical pupils and wide stupid grin that wasn't so fucking menacing. The bouncing singing head looked mocking and fucking retarded, but this particular round head on this decayed beast looked like it wanted to eat our flesh off our bones.

I noted that we were in an apparently empty cavern rather like the one I'd found myself in when I'd accidentally stepped into the magically appearing hole out on that grassy field. There were differences here, of course. There wasn't no tunnel leading up to the sun. Nope, it was dark as could be, lit only by sickly flickering torches that sprang from the cragged stone-crafted walls every couple of meters. The ground weren't so nice and smooth like it was before, and there weren't no sign of any pretty posies to sink a guy's toes in. Shit no, it was rough, cut from the rock by rough tools wielded with no fucking skill, leaving cracks and jagged protrusions inviting stubbed toes and trips. And to top it off, no pleasant colors at all. The other cavern had that bright rug and the flowers. The room after that cavern had all them brightly colored doors and the garishly bright room with its furniture and crap.

Nope, this place was almost black as night, those few areas that were granted by those waning flames a dull gray that bordered on black with a few splatters of some dark coloration across it. I scratched my chin as I stared around myself.

"Blood. You and Cloud have been out for a good while. I've had to defend you."

Turning my gaze to the man who just spoke, I sucked my breath through my teeth as my eyes sprang wide.

Apparently our surroundings and that damned singing cat weren't the only things that changed.

Leon, while he was dressed exactly as I recalled seeing him when we met up in that small furniture-stuffed room with its snoring doorknob, seemed more gaunt than before. Maybe the fact that he was lacking that jacket that Sephiroth had punched a goodly sized hole through and those belts that gave him more visible girth was adding to the effect, but the singular belt he used to hold those pants on his body seemed to be pulled a few inches tighter and the white t-shirt that now carried stains of crimson blood hung loosely around a narrow frame. His face was sporting sunken cheeks that accentuated the rough edging his already lanky ass displayed before, and his skin seemed at least a shade paler if that was even humanly possible which only helped to highlight that scar that cut between his eyeballs. And those wild eyes were burning silver, damned near glowing in the dark cavern we were in, brighter than the neon-tinted gunblade whose colors burned through the heavy coating of dark liquid that was splattered all over it.

It was like staring into the face of dementi itself. Kind of gave me the willies.

Those bright silver eyes narrowed considerably. If I were a man of less fortitude and courage, I would've shit my pants right then and there. Looked like he wanted to eat my face off. "You look like hell, Cid," that gravely voice of his snorted.

"Heh. So do you, kid," I grunted even as I lifted a hand to look at it. I felt my eyes narrow as I noted my slightly paler tone and the rough construction of my hand. Not to say it wasn't rough before – I'm a fucking mechanic, after all – but now I could see almost every vein in it. Fucking skinny as hell, gnarled to the point that it looked like I'd had arthritis for the last four decades of my life. With a huff I dropped my hand to my side and gripped my cigarette tightly with my teeth, barely noticing the rather sickly glow it cast – like the darkness of our surroundings was trying like all hell to extinguish it. "You found out anything?"

"No. The cat just arrived. I was hoping to get some answers from it."

"Ah ha ha," I chortled as I sauntered to his side, glaring down at the rotten creature that looked like it wanted to slurp our blood from our veins. "So, cat. Mind explaining what's goin' on here?"

It was then that the animal began to speak. Or rather, it started with a deep and throaty laugh. I couldn't help but shiver, feeling like someone was running ice cubes up and down my spine as its wheezy sniggering slid through the air, its head bobbing up and down with its chuckles. "'Twas darkness, and the heartless dead did trap and trample in the wave: all mad-ones were the shadow-lead, and the Looking Glass saved.' Twice now you've heard, and twice now you fail to comprehend. So twice now I laugh at your follies."

"Twice?" Leon snarled, his voice as chilling as the cat's as it hissed from his thin lips.

The slit eyes of the cat winked maliciously. I glared at the sniggering critter even though I was on the verge of pissing my pants. Paying no mind to either one of us, the creature continued talking. "Before your hearts were not listening. Here they have no choice. For here the heart is all that exists – here, in madness and decay, where the merriment of the soul dies so the merriment of the soul is saved. Through the Looking Glass."

"The Looking Glass?" I questioned as I looked at Leon. He shook his head slowly. Apparently I wasn't the only one who thought the cat was completely out of its fucking head.

"It means the mirror," Cloud's voice sighed from behind me.

Turning, I stared with huge eyes.

Seemed Cloud had undergone just as rough of a transition from our happy little pastel furniture-filled hell to this desolate place as Leon had. Except he looked even more unhealthy, if that were possible. His clothes hung upon an almost skeletal frame, baggy as fuck and horribly filthy. The arms that were visible from underneath the folds of that hole-flooded cloak of his were skinny and hardly sported any muscle at all, nearly death-white flesh crawling down into his black gloves, the left of which seemed almost fused to his hand with its sharp bronze claws. His skin clung to his skull, sticking sickeningly close to his cheekbones and his jaw, the white coloration bruising to a dark purple around the sunken sockets that held those bright Mako eyes of his. His spiky hair, tainted by dirt, almost seemed limp as it barely lifted itself away from his unhealthy looking head.

If Leon was dementia incarnate, Cloud was the very vision of death-deep depression. Made me almost morbidly curious as to what I fucking looked like. Maybe 'death by cigarettes' or 'grumpiness extreme, compounded by a good forty years of putting up with fucking idiots.' Heh.

Leon seemed just as stunned as I felt when I set my gaze back on him. And Cloud was staring at the two of us like we'd just scampered our way out of a grave – I don't image I looked too far from that, given how our heroic gunblader was looking. Swinging my gaze back at the feline that chuckled before us, I scratched my head.

Leon simply snorted as he ripped those scary silver eyes away from us and focused their murderous gleam on our mangy companion. "Make sense, furball," he snorted.

"Sense in the land of wonder and imagination? Sense is what you must make for yourself," the animal sneered, its flat teeth grinding together.

"At least tell us who you are," Cloud began, his voice soft as a whisper leaking from a corpse.

Bowing the massive head that skinny neck, the cat leered at the spiky-haired brat with his oversized sword. "I am the Cheshire Cat, my friend. Your help if you would so choose to have it. Your adversary if you should so choose such."

"Guys, calm down," Cloud softly said as he laid one hand first on Leon's shoulder then one on mine, stepping firmly between us.

Leon all but flinched visibly underneath that touch before snorting quietly. "Fine. But I want it to start making some sense."

"You're still not listening with your heart. Leave logic out of this – it won't help."

Cloud and I stared at each other as a voice neither one of us recognized entered our conversation. Leon just turned his head slightly, recognition shining in those creepy fucking eyes of his. The cat leered as it swiveled its skull towards the new arrival.

I couldn't help but blink.

What the fuck…?

I was staring at the little Shadow that I've been patting atop his wee head since he saved Leon's hide in the bowels of Hollow Bastion, staring at us with big bright aquamarine eyes that shone with far more intelligence than I would've granted to any Heartless.

The Shadow strode over to us before seating himself beside the cat. Then, to the shock of every one of us, that same voice we'd heard flowed through the air. "The Heartless already tainted the world we were in. The brought despair, misery and death in their wake. That darkness grew until it overtook every last vestige of the world – including the Looking Glass, the only salvation for its restoration. The Looking Glass was used by the Heartless to save the darkness from the Keyblade Master's actions when he shut the keyhole."

We all stared at the Shadow. "How the hell's it that you can fucking talk?" I blurted without thought.

He cocked his head slightly, his antennae quivering with that motion. "Here is the land of the heart. The heart can always speak, provided that the soul and the vessel are willing to listen."

"And you've been seeking your heart with so much determination that your 'vessel' is easily channeling it. You're able to connect with it in this realm, aren't you?" Leon quietly intoned from the other side of Cloud.

The Cheshire Cat chuckled, its pressed grin parting slightly as it spoke. "The land of the heart, the land of imagination, the Wonderland of Alice's dreams and youth is what you saw before you."

"Wow. Talk about a twisted kid," I snorted as I looked around. I barely saw Cloud's head nod in agreement with my statement to my left.

"Not this, good man, but the land you once were in. That land, that innocence, that fun time and humorous diversion built of children's fantasies and laughter. The keyhole was sealed, the Heartless forced to part, but still they found a way."

The Shadow calmly scratched his chin before his voice stained the air again. "If Wonderland is a land of imagination…."

"They struck the girl who imagined it. This 'Alice,'" Leon concluded swiftly.

The cat's ears twitched slightly, perking forward even as its demented flesh-sucking grin grew even more twisted and irregular. "And so does the heart listen and understand. The darkness and the heartless dead did trample the girl's sanity and mind, crushing her light and her heart. Our Wonderland is lost, only a shadow of itself."

"But we were just there!" I snarled.

"An illusion of an illusion," the Shadow's voice sighed. "The remnants of the world that spins through the universe. What we see now is Wonderland's reality. Don't you feel it? The substance of this place? Didn't you feel it? The waking from the dream?"

"So you're sayin' that the gummi… is actually in _this_ world. That when we fell into that damned hole, we were fallin' into a dream, and now we've got the glorious task of findin' our fuckin' way out?" I groaned as I rubbed my forehead with the grubby hand that wasn't occupied by Venus Gospel.

"Wander as you will through the winding tunnels of imagination, you will not find your way without a guide," the cat chuckled with a wink of one of its devil's eyes. "Walking through a dream will not recover the end of the path."

"You want us to do you a favor," Cloud softly muttered, stabbing the end of his oversized sword into the ground and crossing his wrists atop its pommel.

The cat's other eye winked. "For your assistance, I will be your guide. The task is simple in aspect, impossible in reality's view. But only for this task's completion will I guide you to your destination and the end of your nightmare path through our lands."

"Start talking, cat. We're listening," Leon grunted calmly. Even as I stared at him and mouthed 'are you out of your fucking mind,' he snorted and turned those freakish eyes to me. "Not like some of us haven't accomplished the impossible before."

Even as the cat's teeth ground together, the grating sound almost overpowering the deathly cackle that seeped from its withered lungs, its snarling voice whispered, "Our land is ruined. The wonder of Wonderland is done. The land through the Looking Glass has been demolished, crushed by that mirror's twisted actions driven by those who wrested control of it. All that exists now is this warped reflection, this deviant of our home, run by the shadow-lead mad-ones who were trapped by the Looking Glass' darkness, saved from annihilation during the keyhole's sealing. The madness of darkness has touched sweet Alice's mind – the influence of the Heartless will destroy her. The Looking Glass is twisted, crushed, its goodly folk swallowed by fear and insanity. Only those whose sinister souls invited darkness remain – the Night Owl is gone, the White Knight is defeated, the Flower Patch is dried and dead, yet the Jabberwock rules these oddly combined lands, a brand of red glowing upon its slimy chest."

"So you want us to rid Wonderland and the lands of the Looking Glass of the darkness that's twisted them?" Cloud's hushed voice asked.

"Only the girl whose imagination birthed our wondrous lands can accomplish such. Only she can untwist the Looking Glass. Only she can restore Wonderland. The darkness is of her own mind, thus her own mind is all that can overthrow the darkness."

The Shadow set its unnerving gaze on the three of us. "The Heartless are an added influence here. And from what the Cheshire Cat's emphasis is, the Jabberwock is the leader of them. I think we're to eliminate that."

"Sounds like a reasonable conclusion," Leon growled with a nod.

The cat's grin widened, its smile gleaming in the dim light of our surroundings even as its tail lashed about with excitement and stirred up the dust on the ground. "Funny that the one whose heart is so far from his chest is the one who is most apt to listen to it. Listen well, travelers who seek to escape. Make clean the path for Alice's journey. Make nonexistent the Heartless who would stand in her way. Leave her to repair her failing sanity, but make possible the road she will be forced to take. Leave for her to destroy the mad-ones, the Queen who would be of their ranks – destroy the shadows that lead them, that bear the emblem of the nonexistent heart upon their forms. Make the Looking Glass a wondrous world again – make Wonderland a realm of humorous imaginings; or at least make possible its restoration through the girl who sleeps through her maddening dreams."

We all stared as the cat slowly faded away, its body becoming translucent, its disjointed frame seeping out of reality from the feet up. Soon all that was left was that kookily grinning head of its, and soon enough just the gleaming white teeth.

"Gaw, if that ain't enough to fucking knock ten years off my life, I don't know what is," I huffed as I crossed my arms over my chest.

I nearly screeched as its creepy-ass grin popped up just a few meters down the only tunnel that lead out of our cozy little blood-splattered cavern. It took a few moments for the rest of the cat to appear. Once it did, it gestured towards something that shined against the wall with a thin, scraggly paw sporting deadly looking claws.

"If you refuse your instincts, perhaps a weapon is in order. Take care on your journey – there will be many who seek to stop your progression. The Vorpal Knife is a powerful tool. Take it, and defend yourself. Your sanity, your very life depends on it."

We all blinked quizzically as the animal faded completely, leaving nothing but a shining butcher knife behind. Looking to one another, we shrugged.

"Well, I got my weapon," I grunted as I tightened my grip on Venus Gospel.

"Same here," Cloud said, pulling that monster sword of his out of the ground and holding it loosely in his right hand, keeping it forward and ready.

It's for the Shadow," Leon grunted as he tightened his grip on his gunblade and started walking fearlessly down the tunnel, not waiting to see if we were following.

The damned little Shadow marched along at Leon's heels, heading right for that knife and picking it up. With an experimental twirl of that knife as one would give a sword he nodded once, his antennae bobbing comically atop his black head.

"Let's get going," Leon roughly said, hiking his bloodied gunblade over his gaunt shoulder and walking calmly down the tunnel towards only god knows what.

With a resolute sigh, I looked over at Cloud. "You ready for this, Spiky?"

"Yeah. You, old man?"

I was so damned tempted to slap the shit out of the brat for that 'old man' crap. However, given the rather dire situation we'd been put in, I decided to let that rest until another day. "Sure thing. Can't be any fucking worse than what we went through before, eh?"

Cloud huffed, his death-colored lips turning with an odd little smirk as we followed the impatient self-appointed leader out of our arrival place.

_-tbc-_

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Review replies: 

scarletHuntress: Eh heh heh. (sheepishly rubs her head) Well, it was time for a Sora chapter! Feh. It happens from time to time. Hopefully this chapter appeased your need for the Final Fantasy guys for a short time. Next chapter's deviating from them, too. But the chapter after that's a Heartless chapter, so they'll show up again. I don't mean to be a tease… no matter what that damned Ansem plushie of mine may say about me. As for my writing talents, allow me to flush with embarrassment. I'm not of the opinion that I'm that great, but thank you for your compliment! (curtsies)

Manders1953: Alright! Let's hear it for SoCal public edumacation-stuff! (laughs) Where 'bouts? I graduated from ol' Rialto High. All the way back in '96. (flush) I'm so damned old. To answer your question, the _USS Cygnus_ is from the cult-fav Disney flick 'The Black Hole' which is now available on VHS _and_ DVD! Holy smokes! First time I watched it we rented it on Betamax. :)

DarkStarPhoenix: Heh heh. Loved your 'Gameplay.' No experience in the fandom of 'Emotions' though, so I didn't even try that one. :P Good job on your marks, BTW! Quite something to be proud of. :) Now to answer your questions: The spaceship is _supposed_ to have some sort of anti-grav field around it. The movie never really explains it. They mention it with awe and reverence when landing the shuttle the protagonists are in on the _Cygnus_ but then forget to question anyone about it once they're inside. Dr. Reinhart is an evil s.o.b. which is obvious from the moment he's encountered. Just wait 'till you see the depths he goes to! Mwa ha ha. And this chapter should've clarified everything about my lame translation of the Cheshire Cat's happy song. XD Anyway, thanks for reviewing, and _down to self-insertions that aren't strictly for humor!_ Heh heh.

Dark Mog: Oh, I am _so_ interested in the link. Sounds like a job for translator Wendy again. Gonna have to pull out all my dictionaries for those kanji I don't know yet. (cackle) Tis how I knew all that happened in X, like, five years before it came out domestically. And why I'm still squirming in my seat, wondering when Kadokawa books will stop being butt-munches and let CLAMP produce the end of X. They left off on such a horrible cliffhanger! And it's been over 2 years. Hell, almost 3. Geh. You know, I'm not much one for sewing, but I think an Org coat would be pretty simple. Sort through patterns and find something similar – patterns are really easy to modify. My only problem with them is that most large garments are much easier if you can use a sewing machine, and my machine regularly kicks my pathetic ass with its diabolical bobbins. Hope you enjoyed this chapter – the next has its optional counterpart. (grin, nods vigorously) Very… vivid.

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Mwa ha ha ha! A new chapter! (squeezes the stuffing out of her plushie, which struggles vainly and whaps her solidly with his 'SUBMIT!' sign until she topples into a drooling heap. Sneering, the plushie dances on her head instead on the 'submit reviews' feature like he had been directed before the bashing of the authoress) 


	29. Suspicions

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) A small warning - some of exceptionally virginal minds might find this racy towards the end. Skim if it scars the senses. In my ever so humble opinion it's nothing over PG-13, though, so feh. For additional author notes and review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 29  
The Cloaked Schemer – Suspicions

I slowly let my eyes blink, taking in my surroundings quite calmly.

"It is rather intriguing," I intoned, my voice flat and even.

"And that is the depth of your opinion?" my companion in my sojourn questioned.

Turning slightly, I shrugged, my slight movement rustling the thick black robes that draped over my shoulders. "It's all I have to say at the moment."

Our footfalls made soft tapping thumps that reverberated down the empty hallways, filling the empty corridor with something other than the unearthly light that otherwise kept us company. The sounds of boots striking against perfectly cut marble tile, of shuffling thick fabric that was displaced by the movement of legs and the swaying brush of arms, of the scrape of sole against flooring that occasionally slipped through the repetitious thuds of precision steps, were our constant companions.

"A man of few words," my companion quietly said, his voice deep as it slid from his thick throat. Turning his head slightly, the clothing he wore that was so identical to my own adding its own soft noise to the environment with his motion, he let his bottomless blue eyes stare at my face. "Certainly you have more thoughts. Why not give them voice?"

My thin shoulders moved in a shrug once more. "I'd rather not voice those thoughts until there's substance to support them. Until they're proven fact, they're naught but suspicions."

I watched with disinterest as my companion let his flat lips turn with a slight frown and tore his penetrating gaze from me, returning it to face in the direction of our journey. He folded his thick arms before his barrel-like chest, his strongly muscled legs moving his large frame with strength and purpose alongside me. That strong square jaw of his set, he furrowed his brow slightly, drawing his auburn brows together. "You once trusted me," that rumbling voice of his stated blandly.

"I still trust you," I said as I watched his reactions.

He seemed a bit agitated, drawing one hand away from its resting place in the crook of its opposing arm to draw its thick, gloved digits through his short wavy brown hair even as he ducked his head and closed those fixating eyes. Clearing his throat, he cracked open those eyes, looking sidelong at me with what might almost be constituted as a glower while his hand slowly dragged its way away from his back-swept follicles. "Indeed. But you won't speak your mind."

"Because my mind is not set enough on this to be spoken," I clarified. "You should know that until total fact is presented, I'm not one to make known anything."

"Because to do so would reveal your eventual plans. Doing so would eliminate your ability to manipulate everyone around you so effectively."

I snorted quietly, my nose wrinkling in disdain. "No. Because doing so would be to bring worry that was unnecessary to persons other than myself."

"Don't pretend you care, Zexion. You aren't capable of it," the man at my side huffed quietly.

"Don't pretend you're offended, Lexaeus. You're as capable of such as I am of caring," I retorted, my voice a soft hiss.

It was true. Nobodies aren't thought to have the capacity for caring, after all. Indeed, the creatures known as 'Nobodies' are supposedly completely devoid of emotional capacity. Their hearts, stripped away from their bodies and escorted by the darkness of the limitless Kingdom to dwell in its folds, beats so far from those empty chests that anything emoted from those ensnared hearts is captured, trapped, crushed before it can ever be felt.

We are Nobodies, my companion and I. We can't feel anything.

The experiments we'd conducted so many years ago saw to that. Our explorations into the workings of the human heart, the power contained therein, drew our curiosity to ravenous depths that consumed our questionable sanity.

It was innocent enough at first – questions as to what made the human heart feel, what made it work the way it does. Understanding why it functions the way it does. Understanding why it throbs, why it aches, why it jumps, why it flutters. To understand the heart was to understand humanity. To understand humanity was to attain oneness with those around a person.

Them Xemnas saw it differently.

To understand the heart was to hold power over those who held them. The human heart wasn't just a vestige of emotions – it was a house of strength, an unending energy source that had yet to be tapped. A well of light, an unending abyss of darkness, those two simplest of concepts the root of all creation. To understand the heart was to control the heart. To control the heart was to be like a god.

That primal lust for power consumed us all.

Xemnas became a base creature seeking power after the experiments that Ansem the Wise inflicted on him. I would have thought those procedures cruel, inhumane… but what Xemnas became was unbelievable. Powerful. Enviable. And so we all allowed ourselves to seep ourselves in that lust, in that desire, and follow the most prestigious of our colleagues in his quest for ultimate understanding.

Eventually our quest for that understanding we could never grasp lead to our hypothesizing the existence of Kingdom Hearts. Those hypotheses lead to our discovery of the truth behind the power of the worlds.

So consumed by greed for that power, we six strove diligently towards grasping it, controlling it, seizing it, understanding it.

Experimentation upon ourselves, attempts to connect us fully with it, ended rather… unexpectedly. I would perhaps say they ended in disaster save for the undeniable fact that while we don't 'live' as humans would define it, we still exist and still have the capability to 'live' again.

I had never expected our final tests to tear my heart from my body as our previous attempts at harnessing a sliver of power from the seemingly untouchable Kingdom had done to my colleagues. I had never expected the results of that final test to make me as I am.

Unable to feel, unable to care, uncaring about that lack of ability. We were Nobodies – persons lacking in heart, lacking in spirit.

Ultimately one could say we were lacking in identity. Though we were each individuals and easily distinguished from one another not only by our unique looks but our different base personalities, that spark of life, that fire of emotion that made us truly 'be' was gone. Each of us was 'nobody.' An inconsequential being who had no real impact on the realm of the heart, on the Kingdom of light and darkness that we strove to puncture, on the hearts we once had that now rest within that Kingdom's folds.

It was almost funny – I knew what we were. I knew how we'd come to be. I could vaguely recall the change in Xemnas' original persona when the machinations of Ansem had warped him into the Xemnas we now know, splitting his heart from his body to create a Heartless and a Nobody in one singular moment. My mind's hazed eye recalls each of my comrades after they'd fallen to their own greed. I can recall in stark detail the look upon Lexaeus' face when he'd approached me after his cooperative efforts with Vexen had resulted in the decimation of his own heart. I faintly remember a scream, a blood curdling lamentation by a voice unaccustomed to such volumes and pitches, at that moment. However, anything after that….

After that moment, everything goes black. I remember nothing until I opened my eyes, staring at the bland dark walls of Ansem's basement laboratory, my heart beating so far from my chest that I could no longer recognize it. The moment 'Zexion' began to exist is the moment my mind's recollections become crystalline. Everything before that is encased in an aggravating haze, unable to be drawn clear of the foggy remnants of forgetfulness.

Yes, quite funny. The mind that had earned me the rank of number six of Organization XIII, the mind that had established me as one of the original apprentices of Ansem the Wise, the mind that so many looked upon with envious hate for its sharp aptitude at its exceptionally young age, was unable to remember anything clearly before 'Zexion' began to exist save fleeting glimpses of faded imagery. I couldn't remember voices. I couldn't remember original names. And every time I started to seep into that strange state between conscious observation of the world around me with consideration of how to place all the little pawns in my surrounding environment to my greatest advantage and unconscious lamentation for all that had slipped through my fingers, those few moments that existed between awareness and the lack thereof, everything would go black as it had at that moment the odd scream had pierced the atmosphere of my memories and I would regain my vision of the world in an entirely different time and location than was last recorded by my mind.

To say this bothered me on some deep level would be an understatement. While I couldn't become angered or hateful of my lapses, they did indeed stir concern… and perhaps deep within the heart that was ripped from me so long ago a small sliver of fear. Which, of course, was completely ridiculous, as I couldn't truly feel anything anymore.

I stirred out of my thoughts, drawn free of my musings over our natures and how we'd come to be by my companion's stare.

"What?" I brought myself to say after searching those eyes and failing to find anything but his stark stoicism and complete seriousness that was normally so characteristic laced through his being.

"You're troubled by something," he quietly observed.

My steady walk down the bland corridor came to a stop. As my black robes ceased their movement, becoming as still as I was, I stared at the white tile under my feet.

He came to a stop as well, standing evenly with me in the white corridor we inhabited. As his silence became as physically omnipresent as he was, I turned my head to look at him.

Tall, hugely built, muscles stacked on a body devoid of fat that rippled underneath the black clothing we of Organization XIII wore and similarly buried beneath the robe that topped it all, Lexaeus cut an imposing figure. He appeared as one in his later years of his second decade of life, featuring a stern face, a strong jaw, hands capable of breaking a man in half and eyes that could pierce anyone they focused on effortlessly. The man was brutishly built – sometimes it was difficult to believe that a sharp, swift mind capable of retaining nearly every detail of what those eyes beheld existed within that auburn-haired skull. He was one to easily stun casual observers with the depth of his genius, his strange ability to draw seemingly impossibly accurate conclusions from what most would consider to be circumstantial evidence and half-baked analysis. The unassuming demeanor he held wasn't an assistant in proving his intellect, either – Lexaeus was one to observe quietly, watching with unmatched calm and calculating eyes while the gears in his brain rapidly turned out answers no one else was capable of deriving.

It was almost funny to think how he was so often the one to suggest that we simply observe, holding me back from any rash decisions. And they call me the Cloaked Schemer. The only reason I can justify such a title is because the man referred to as the Silent Hero has held me back on so many occasions, allowing me to see what I otherwise would have missed as to formulate an advantageous plan around said details.

"Troubling me?" I slowly let my shoulders sag, relaxing from their normally straight, tense state. "What it is happens to be nothing of concern."

"So it's not our current situation," Lexaeus' powerful voice intoned.

"No."

"Reflecting on the past again, Zexion?"

I couldn't refrain the action of my own face as it fell into a stunned expression, my mouth slipping slightly open and my eyes widening of their own accord. Was I really so obvious?

"You needn't bother. 'What's done is done. Only the future matters now.' That is what you told me after you became a Nobody. Maybe you need to apply your own words to yourself."

My brow furrowed, my exclamation of surprise swept away by a minor twinge of irritation. "Of course," I very nearly snapped.

I relaxed as he laid one of his massive hands with soft care on my thin shoulder and gave it a tender squeeze. "Calm, Zexion," he muttered, his dark blueeyes softening slightly. "You simply needed to be reminded of your own convictions. Let us focus on more important matters at hand."

"Like this rather intriguing development. I'd still appreciate knowing what the Superior is thinking. Such is why I won't voice my suspicions."

"If you give them voice, perhaps I can assist you in figuring out this little puzzle," Lexaeus suggested.

I flashed him a slight glower, my thoughts clearly expressed in that glance. Was he mad?

It was rather like Lexaeus accused earlier – to voice my thoughts was to eliminate my ability to manipulate and control the situation that surrounded me.

However….

I still trusted him.

For some reason far beyond my comprehension, I knew to the bottom of my being that the muscle-bound intellectual at my side was the only individual I would share any thought with, no matter how half-baked it might be or how it may decimate my efforts at a later time. Somehow I knew that he wasn't one to work against me – rather he'd work with me, striving as hard as I to see my plans come to fruition as soon as he was made aware of them.

"Alright," I finally conceded. "Don't you think it to be odd that, of all people, the Superior gave control of Castle Oblivion and our prize to Marluxia? The eleventh ranking person in the Organization?"

"Perhaps," Lexaeus said with a slow nod, giving my shoulder another light squeeze even as he pushed gently at it, forcing me to continue my walk.

"I would think that a structure of such magnitude would be under the control of one of us six."

"Don't tell me you're envious."

"Hardly," I huffed. "You know we're incapable of such."

"Indeed," the man said, a wry smirk finally turning those normally flat lips.

I glared icily at him for a few moments, barely watching him reach forward with his other huge hand a grip a doorknob. Blinking a few times, I focused my attention straight ahead. Staring blankly at the white door with its delicate embossed scroll, I let a sigh leak through my nostrils – we'd arrived without my conscious awareness of my surroundings at the stark white hallway's end. I shuffled aimlessly into the nearly empty room whose door Lexaeus had just opened, freed finally from the massive hand that had held me at bay.

I swiftly took in my surroundings. The room was plain, Spartan, almost completely bare. No alcoves were cut into its perfect white walls. No torches or lamps existed to give the room its ethereal white glow. A plain white stand stood in one corner of the room, carrying its white vase and the perfectly white porcelain flowers it contained for decoration. A white table stood in the room's center, accompanied by four white chairs with simple white cushions.

So very lacking in life. So very lacking in fire. So very lacking in vibrant color.

Rather like the Nobodies that dwell within this massive structure's halls.

We were black, dwelling in a world of white. Spots of darkness in a land of light. A contradiction to our very surroundings, yet perfectly synonymous with them.

I couldn't help but sigh at the mediocrity of it all – the Castle, our failed experiments, our missing pasts and ourselves – as I made my way to that table.

Even as I seated myself in one of the plain white chairs, I let my eyes narrow as I glowered at the floor, returning to the prior bend of our conversation and deciding to do my thinking out loud. "No, there has to be a reason. Why would he move Marluxia out of The World That Never Was? Why segregate him from the fold? Why send him and Larxene here to Castle Oblivion? Two of our younger Organization members aren't required to keep their eyes on our little drawing-spinning prize."

"You suspect that he knows something we don't about those two."

"Of course," I confirmed with a slight nod. "But the question is what? And why were we three chosen to come and baby sit them?"

"The answer to that one is simple. Because you're brilliant at deducing whatever is happening in your environment, Vexen is so driven to his tasks that he'll dedicate himself with reckless abandon to whatever he would be put up to once you figure out what's truly happening, and I would have the power to eliminate either of those younglings should they get out of hand."

I scoffed at that notion. "You truly believe that?"

"Refute it," Lexaeus said with a shrug.

"Hm. Point taken," I agreed after a few silent moments. "But that doesn't answer the question of what drove the Superior to send those two here. The eleventh and the twelfth."

Lexaeus slowly slid his massive frame behind my own, lightly laying his hands on my shoulders, holding me firmly in my chair. "Perhaps he suspects what Xigbar suggested. That those two aren't so dedicated to the reuniting of heart and Nobody as the rest of us are, and instead would use our machinations against us once everything was in place."

"The 'conspiracy theory' he holds? That Marluxia is trying to draw control of the Organization away from the Superior? Ridiculous," I huffed even as I leaned back into my elder's touch.

"Is there any reason to refute that theory?" he mumbled as he slowly stooped, placing his jaw evenly with my ear, his hot breath lightly brushing through my hair and over my skin.

My mind fogged temporarily, my body unconsciously shuddering before I snapped into crisp reality and snorted. "I'll have to think about it."

"Then slow down and think about it. There's no rush, Zexion. As we've seen for ourselves, Marluxia and Larxene are too busy trying to learn the workings of Castle Oblivion to move forward with any sort of actions that would draw the Superior's suspicions of their loyalty. Let them get their footing; let them build their confidence. Then they will move, then we can observe, then we can discover what they're plotting-"

"And then we can strike," I interrupted, finishing his thought.

"Exactly," he confirmed.

"Or, more appropriately, Vexen can be moved to strike."

"His hatred of Marluxia for his disrespectful attitude knows no bounds," Lexaeus breathed even as he slid his hands from my shoulders to drape his fingers delicately along my slim chest.

I shivered slightly as his thick fingers slid the fabric of my robe and my shirt along my skin. Blinking rapidly, I grit my teeth and drew a sharp breath through my nose, hoping the relatively cool air would clear my fading senses and bring my vision back into its usual crystalline focus. "Nngh," I vaguely heard my voice mutter.

"You would put him at risk?" his voice brushed against the shell of my ear.

"I… would rather him…."

"'Would rather him' what?" he teasingly questioned.

His left hand's fingers were curling into my clothing, brushing cloth-blunted nails over one of my nipples. I couldn't contain the slight groan that was pushing through my slender throat as he slipped his other roaming hand steadily down my body.

"Than… put you or… me… at… mph. Risk," I finally managed to answer, my eyes squeezing tightly shut to ward off the almost dizzying vision of the stark white room we were in swimming lazily through an ocean of soft black haze. "Will you stop?" I hissed moments later, the pressing of my eyelids together and the complete blacking out of my vision helping me draw some of my focus back. "I can't concentrate."

"I told you before, Zexion," his voice softly chuckled. "Slow down. No rush. Just relax yourself. Whether or not you can concentrate has no impact on the current situation."

As his hand made its way to my groin, my conscious awareness of my surroundings faded completely, the very last thing I was able to absorb into my befuddled brain being Lexaeus' lips upon my ear and his majestic voice whispering a word, perhaps a name that I could have sworn I should have been able to recognize.

When I finally was able to open my eyes and see where I was, I felt my lips turn with a dire scowl.

How the hell had I managed to end up in Lexaeus' bedroom?

A sigh escaped my lips even as I lifted my head from its warm resting place that was rhythmically rising and falling. It wasn't as if this was the first time I'd awakened in my elder's arms, held with inescapable certainty against his large frame with our bare flesh intimately in contact, but it still aggravated me to no end.

Not to say the thought of something occurring between us bothered me. The scrutiny, the hisses, the flagrant biting statements of the other members of the Organization had no impact on me. It was my lack of recollection of any of those unremembered encounters in my mind that set my teeth on edge. And in the darker recesses of my paranoid mind, I couldn't help but suspect that it was entirely Lexaeus' doing, Lexaeus' desire, that caused those lapses to occur with surprising frequency.

Instead of frustrating myself further by pondering when exactly I'd lost control of myself and what Lexaeus had probably been doing to encourage that, I laid myself back down, pressing my cheek against his warm, smooth-skinned chest once more and let the breath I'd been holding leak from between my lips.

As his thick hands pressed themselves a bit more tightly against my bare back, I couldn't help but let a tiny smile slide to my lips.

It was rare for any of us to trust one another. It was even more rare for any of us to completely let our guards down around each other.

Lexaeus trusted me so completely.

Was that a dire mistake on his part?

Lifting a hand, I slowly brushed my slim fingers through his wavy hair, arching a brow as his sleepy sigh of content carried the word 'Ienzo' on its breath.

For both of our sakes, I hoped dearly that the trust he had for me was not misplaced.

"Rest well," I whispered, letting my eyes drift completely shut and letting the inexplicable weariness that plagued my frame overwhelm me at last.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: If you're wondering what happened during the 'blackout' session (and you're old enough/mature enough to read X-rated smut), then head over to the following addy (remove the spaces) – 

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ bcd29-5. html

Woah. I'm actually tying in a touch of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, if any of you were _totally_ lost during this chapter. If you want to understand, I'd recommend playing the game. Doesn't take more than 100 hours to complete both stories (Sora and Riku), and that's if you're building a decent Sora deck and leveling a bit with Riku. Yes, I put in 40 hours on Sora and maxed out my time meter at 99:99:99 with Riku, but that's me. I love my silver-haired jail-bait boy and the Org dudes in the basement. Le sigh. Lexaeus and Zexion. So as close to canon as anything can get in a Disney/Square production.

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Review replies: ((first off, let me fall off my chair and stare with disbelief. BCD has gotten over 100 reviews. Thanks, guys! (grovels at reviewers' feet) I might actually have to doodle a 'thanks for 100 reviews' picture or something. Be warned – my doodles suck.)) 

scarlettHuntress: Woah. Wasn't expecting anyone to be lost. (sheepish look) At least it's not the 'I'm never gonna get it' kind of lost! Glad you're still enjoying the fic! Hopefully this chapter kept up to standards. :)

DarkStarPhoenix: Well, the 'in the wave' part is mostly referring to a 'wave' of Heartless sweeping through and crushing everything in their path. Kinda just symbolic. Yeah, I suck. (sheepish laugh) Best I could do at the moment. As for black holes themselves, I've read so many theories and delved into so many physics studies of them my head swirls trying to think about them. So happens that black holes, worm holes and Bell's theory are some of the things that really get me bounding with interest and glee. For this particular black hole, I'll be sticking to the movie mechanics (which suck, by the way – script was written in '78, film produced in '79 and it's all very scientifically inaccurate – it's just a fun watch). So feh. No getting to bust out with the new alt-uni/trans-dimensional-bubble/infinite-densityinfinite-matterskewed-universe theories that I've read. They make my brain hurt.

littlekittykat: To answer the question in your first post, I operate nuclear reactors onboard an aircraft carrier in the US Navy. The job itself isn't bad – it's the politics involved with the job (and the constant Washington DC supervision while we're in port) that suck. Having everything you do scrutinized by people who theorized the original designs/improved designs of our plants is nerve wracking. Having one mistake made my someone else in the plant and going down with them because you're in a supervisory position sucks. Bleh. Oh, no need to read the books, really – I just love them, and love the original characterizations before Disney bastardized them. And I really missed the Night Owl, the White Knight and the Jabberwock. Second post – what happened in that chapter will soon be explained. Mwe he he. Third post – that too will be explained. It's not so much to do with Hades as it is to do with the person that drove him to create his contract with Hades. Insert an evil grin here. Oh, and it has something to do with a person he was friends with in the past. And a person he may have actually been. And… crap. I've given too much away. (topples over)

Dark Mog: (tries to crush the typo in a mountain of Diet Coke cans) Thanks for pointing that out! Typo squashed. Feh. And even got another one while I was at it! Jabberwock. Not Jaberwock. Wow, I suck. (sheepish grin) You guessed it right – after a swift reread of the books and watching of the Disney _and_ the 1980's PBS live action movie versions of 'Alice in Wonderland,' I determined that American McGee's Alice is the most… marvelous sequel of all time. And so it's getting heavily used. Also gives me an excuse to play the game again – I'm freaking the hell out of myself, playing it late at night in a perfectly silent house with all the lights off. (demented giggle) Sewing machines are evil – at least to me. My mother makes them into tame bunnies ready to do her bidding. I have no clue how she does it. I'm the freaking nuclear operator; she's a secretary, and she gets the machines to obey. I don't get it. I run away. Oh! And the album… (begins to heartily drool all over herself) Mmmmm… heart you forever… scaaaaaaans… (incoherent babble and gleeful squeals)

* * *

(the evil Ansem plushie pokes the still, dead body of Wends before snickering madly. Suddenly he's punted off the screen by the heavy boot of our muss-haired boy of silvery goodness. The Nobody clears his throat) Sorry to report, but the authoress has squeed herself to death staring at KH:CoM scans. (sweatdrop) She blubbered away in her own spittle when I was being portrayed as an emotional psychopath moments before my… final appearance in the magna. So to say. (gestures lamely towards the 'submit review' feature before ambling off, muttering something about needing to track down those 'final fantasy' types to fetch a phoenix down before her body starts to rot on her apartment floor – only one optional chapter with him in it is entirely unsatisfactory, damn it all) 


	30. Fright

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 30  
The Heartless – Fright

This comment may seem a bit strange coming from a Heartless of all things, but here it is.

Wonderland is truly scaring the shit out of me.

Yes, me. One of the endless hordes of shadowy demons from nightmares abroad, one of the countless numbers who were responsible for the corruption and destruction of countless worlds. I had seen the darkness of Kingdom Hearts and stared into its pith without fear. I had seen the light of Kingdom Hearts and faced it without being decimated. I had seen the fall of worlds, the consuming of helpless individuals, the beastly depths to which my kind was known to fall and continue their abhorred existences from. I had felt the shadowy touch of a heart in my claws. I had witnessed the fall of the human heart and spirit in the throes of darkness. I had witnessed the decimation of colleagues, of friends, to the darkness of greed and lust for power. I had seen horrible experiments that tore the hearts from bodies and crafted empty vessels in their stead alongside unique and terribly powerful Heartless never before encountered. I had watched the double doors of Kingdom Hearts swing shut, watching cerulean eyes that my heart pined for vanish for all time. I had felt the sensation of being abandoned, of having every last vestige of corporeal confirmation of one's own existence torn away by the battle between light and dark, ripped asunder by grasping hands of complete shadow. I had witnessed my own dissolution into darkness, my own fade into the surreal existence of a Heartless.

And none of that was half as frightening as this fucking place.

It wasn't so much the stark changes in the physical appearances of my companions, nor the strange realization that here I could understand them, that here I could hear them, that here I could be heard. It wasn't that I'd been granted the opportunity to learn that their names are Cloud, Cid and Leon, though I would admit that such did freak me out a bit. Still didn't scare me silly though. Not the fact that Leon looked like a rabid animal with eyes that remained an insane silver coloration and a face that exuded hate for the world, a too-skinny frame with stringy muscles clinging to wiry arms that still hefted that huge weapon of his without care. Not the fact that Cloud looked like a warmed-over corpse, those glowing eyes of his sunken into his sockets and his skin a frighteningly pale white that bordered on deathly blue that was drawn unnaturally tight over his skeleton, the normally outrageously spiked hair limp and lifeless. Not the fact that Cid looked almost as gristly as his companions, his skin tight and creased and brown as that of a man whose body was left to dry in the desert sun, his eyes horribly bright and glaring, his teeth almost constantly grinding together against one another and his usual grin a grimace that made him look something like a schizophrenic lusting to kill everyone in his path.

No, it wasn't them. Their physical changes were something I could easily deal with. It didn't change their personalities any – it just made them eerie to look at.

It was definitely the place.

It almost seemed innocent enough at first. Winding passageways chewed out of harsh rocks with barely-there lighting cast about by sickly torches held in rough cast iron hangers. The eruption into the large cavern with its shacks haphazardly built about its expanse and its tortured little people meandering around, their skin horribly pasty and their faces drawn. The lamentations of those people that their work was unending, that they were slaves under the threat of darkness and the diabolical Queen of Hearts that sided with their shadowy tormenters. The screams of those people as they rested their eyes upon me, the instantaneous instinctual desire to flee motivating them to drop their heavy baskets filled with rocks and dash for the nearest safe shelter they could find.

Innocent and normal, I thought.

Then we started seeing the writhing slimy tentacles that were permeating the cavern, wriggling obscenely through the rockwork itself.

And then we started coming across the cards.

Yes, cards. Cards with lances. Cards with faces. Cards with attitudes.

Cards that like to mash people with their lances while cackling with those faces and spewing hateful snark with their smarmy attitudes.

At first they weren't moving to threaten me. In fact, the first card we came across stared at us blankly, its eyes resting upon me with curious intrigue as if it was wondering what I was doing escorting some strange humans around in the land of knobby little gnome people that were slaving away to clear tunnels to their majesty's delight.

Then Leon struck.

That gunblade of his whistled through the still cavern air, cutting forward with impossible speed and dexterity and cleanly cutting across our planes of vision. We'd all stared with confusion evident in our eyes as he scowled, hefting that massive weapon over his shoulder.

Then the top half of that card fell away from the bottom, leaving its legs to dance without control while its halved body spurt blood and its face gasped the last of its death throes into the dirt.

I naturally flipped out, staring with huge eyes and horror at the wretched face of the dying card. Leon simply flicked the gunblade in his hand violently towards the floor, flinging some of the new sheen of brilliant red blood that marred his weapon onto the cavern's rocky environment. "Keep going," he all but hissed.

We all obeyed.

As Cloud moved forward to step before me and trod at Leon's side, they came across many of those small overworked gnomish people, striking conversations with them, listening with unmatched patience to their lamentations about the evils of the Red Queen and her shadowy escorts that had never before been seen in these lands. _Heartless._ They sighed how death was their only release from their hapless imprisonment, how there was no happiness to be found in life but only through death, and how they were cowards to not take that road, choosing simply to follow their current miserable paths.

The moment any one of those people laid their eyes upon me, they'd scream and run.

And their screams drew more of those cards.

We all inevitably fought, my butcher knife becoming surprisingly effective as I wildly wielded it. Soon motions to take with a sword flew back to my brain – how to parry the lance that was coming for my head, how to sidestep and lunge forward with strangely practiced ease to deliver a decent blow to the side that drew a fountain of gushing hot blood. Block three blows, lunge forward with a strike. Feint back, tumble onto my back, spring forward off of my hands to plow my feet into the card that was coming for me. Follow that spring with a slash of my knife to disembowel the creature.

Cloud and Cid also fought with surprising aptitude – I guess their weapons aren't entirely for show. The giant blade in the skinny spiky-haired blond's hands was segregated into two, a thin blade being stripped from the completed assembly's left side and used for short-range blocking. Cid kept that spear of his constantly on the move, twirling and blocking most of the attacks that came for him, returning the poking favor and stabbing through many foes. Leon simply took point, drawing the majority of the fiendish cards' attacks, delivering death with every swing of that neon weapon of his.

Then the shadows began to writhe, my worst fear coming true.

The Heartless that were the extra burden on Alice's mind, that helped depreciate this land, were coming forth. They sensed our presence and were coming to assist their minions.

As Neo-Shadows oozed forth, I heard a startled cry and a 'What the hell is this?' from Cloud. I almost wanted to glare incredulously at him – he of all people should know Heartless when he sees them, after all! Ignoring his bewildered question, I nervously gripped my knife, aware that it would not assist me in this fight – but it would be marvelous against those cards they were surrounding and protecting.

Leon simply charged in, a roar on his lips and his blade shining in a silvery arch as it swung.

I couldn't help but shudder as black ink flew with the swipe of his blade, my brethren toppling with frightening certainty with his attack. It wasn't that I felt pity for any of them… it was rather that I wondered if there might have been any like myself in that mass, any who might have a vague recollection of what their heart might have felt like and whether or not a return from the Kingdom could assist them in finding it again.

Cloud swept past me, his sword still in two separate pieces and both hands working his blades in curious harmony. Stepping with certain ease towards the battling gunblade wielder, he set his weapon to work, cleaving brilliantly through the swarm that was attempting to block our progression through the cavern we were exploring.

Cid let loose with a sharp war cry, his spear swinging into a sweep once before punching straight, embedding its sharp tip into a card. Hefting it with all of his might, Cid threw the struggling, blood-spewing spade into a nearby ravine, listening with a twisted smile as it screamed on its way to its certain doom.

I had to help. With a nod, I gripped my knife tightly and burst into a run, swerving amongst those Neo-Shadows that were in my way as I aimed for the remaining cards who threatened our progression. Soon my claws were slicked with blood, my knife a shining red sliver in the faint light of our surroundings, my feet splashing in life's vitae.

The attacks were seemingly unending. The cards fell as from a deck thrown by a child playing fifty-two pickup, scattering themselves upon us even as we decimated those troops who'd originally stood in our path.

Soon we were running out of foes in that area, only to watch the shadows swarm and wriggle in the distance. With reserved scowls we barreled away from our location, attempting recklessly to make our ways to the next inevitable fight.

After all, the Cat practically tasked us with wiping out the Heartless in this once merry and free-spirited world. We were going to hold ourselves to that plea and attempt to make it reality. The people I was with were too good-hearted to let that cry for help go unanswered.

We ran as quickly as we could through the massive cavern, dodging tentacles that seemed to reach for us, sliding around corners cautiously to take those who would oppose us by surprise.

Cid nearly screamed as the Cheshire Cat's grin popped back into view.

"Sometimes a leap of faith is in order. Ride the winds," the Cat hissed as he gestured with his paw to his location.

"Ride the winds my ass!" Cid snarled. "You think that shit can lift any of us? Fuck that!"

Leon simply shrugged. "If you can't make it, tough."

"You bastard!" the pilot snarled even as the gunblader took a running start and leap with feline grace across the ravine, almost startled out of his picturesque long jump when the geyser of air he was leaping across did indeed boost his body a few more feet into the air. His feet rose a cloud of dust as he screeched to a halt on the other side, looking blandly back at us.

I threw my knife across the ravine, watching with pleasure as it stuck in the stony wall. Then I went two-dimensional and slithered my way across.

What, you expected me to do the 'leap of faith' thing? Yeah right.

Cloud picked Cid up by the back of his shirt and his pants and threw him across before letting that dark wing of his burst into being and taking his own jump, that extra appendage almost throwing him off-balance as the geyser's exhaust caught him and tossed him to our little gathering.

The Cat's smile twisted a bit more deeply, its flat teeth grinding together as it narrowed its yellowed eyes at us. "Congratulations are in order. You're learning the motions of Wonderland quickly. But not quick enough – time is of the essence. And none are so familiar with this than Rabbit."

I looked up at Cloud, who shrugged at me before questioning the decrepit animal before us. "What do you mean? Who's this Rabbit?"

"Who cares?" Leon snarled softly. We all chose to ignore him.

"Rabbit is our herald, the swift and sure-footed. It is he alone that may be able to call to the girl who can save us. But whether or not he is aware of his Queen's fall is debatable. Find Rabbit – call his attention to our plight and convince him to gather Alice. Call to him so he might gather her heart and bring our champion to us before we fall to complete ruin. For such insight into our Wonderland's fall, he is likely to aide you. After all, Rabbit is not as ridiculous as he looks – he knows his way around. And I myself need no weathervane to tell which direction the winds blow."

I scratched my head with my claws, brushing back my antennae momentarily. "You want us to find this Rabbit, in exchange for directions and a firm path to follow to this Jabberwock?"

"The heart listens well. Keep open that vessel, you who have all but lost it," the Cat chuckled softly as he faded from view.

Cid suddenly burst in the eerie silence that had fallen over us, "Hey! I think I see our pesky fuckin' rodent! Ten o'clock!"

We all turned and looked, eyes huge and startled.

Sure enough, a thin, scraggly rabbit in a tall top hat was checking an oversized pocket watch. A moment later, his mouth screwed in a grimace, he stuffed that pocket watch into his rotting vest's pocket. "I'm late, I'm late!" he shouted before dropping to all fours and bolting.

"Wait!" I screeched as I burst into a run after him, remaining three-dimensional for quicker travel.

I was unable to catch the wily rabbit in time. He ducked through a door – a door I had to seriously put the brakes on to keep from mashing into. My eyes remained huge as I stared through the portal he'd just vanished into.

It was only a few inches high! And here I could have sworn that he was nearly as tall as Leon when we'd first seen him!

Crap.

"I can make it through. You guys can't," I muttered, turning back to my companions who'd finally caught up with me.

"Presents a problem," Leon grumbled while scratching his chin.

"Yeah. Especially considering that this door's the only portal we've seen that leads somewhere other than this cavern," Cloud intoned.

"Well, what the fuck do we do now?" Cid snarled.

I hung my head. "I have no clue. We'd have to get very, very small to make it through."

"Not a problem, lads," a voice growled from behind us.

We all turned as one, Leon instantly slashing forth with his blade, Cloud barely grabbing his wrist in time to keep him from halving the person who'd successfully snuck up on us.

The old gnome arched a brow, shaking his head. "That door leads to my airship, nowhere else. From here there is no true escape. Not without my assistance."

As the warriors practically fought each other to get that gunblade lowered, I took a cautionary step forward. "You'll assist us?" I asked, my voice hovering on the air.

The wrinkled little man before me flashed me a bit of a grin. "You seem different than those other ones out there. You haven't tried to rip me apart quite yet. So yes, I'll help you. The Cheshire Cat's seemed to take a liking to you from what I've witnessed with my eyes." Lifting his smoldering pipe he took a long drag from it and exhaled a plume of smoke. "Any friend of the Cat is a friend of Wonderland. I have a potion in my house that will reduce you in size so you might fit through that door. It will take the last of what I have, though – anyone else who comes along will have to help me gather the ingredients to make a new batch."

"We don't care. You can worry about that later," Leon snarled, his silver eyes flashing brilliantly as he shouldered his weapon.

"Very well," the old gnome said with a shrug before shuffling into one of the nearby shacks to rummage.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" I overheard Cloud hiss at the gunblader. "He's trying to help us!"

Leon stoically refused to reply, simply glaring off towards where the little gnome had vanished.

I couldn't help but shudder and face away. Leon certainly was acting coldly….

"Ah, here we are," the old gnome's voice sounded once more, oddly close. I shuddered nervously. The creature's ability to sneak around without detection was most eerie. "Just a sip, each of you. It should be enough for all four."

Without hesitation I took the flask he held in his wrinkled hand. After all, I'm only a Heartless – if anyone was going to be a test subject for an unknown concoction, might as well be me. At first I pondered how exactly I was supposed to drink it; I don't really have a mouth. With a slight shrug of reservation, I stuck a finger into the mouth of the flask, feeling the liquid inside lap around my inky skin. A few seconds of concentration let me diffuse that part of my body, becoming naught but darkness, something ethereal to blend with that fluid before reforming it and capturing nearly a quarter of it within my own structure.

My clutch on that flask slipped as I began to rapidly shrink in size. I could only stare as the gnome's hand swiftly grabbed that silver vessel before it clunked onto the floor and spilled its contents. I let a slight squeak of shock escape me as I began to notice how very large Cloud's boots were. And then I noticed how sizable that door we were in front of actually was. "The hell!" I breathed, staring at the portal before me.

I looked up into the surprised faces of my companions, watching as they peered at me as if I were a bug then looked at each other. The gnome impatiently waved his flask towards them, his voice huge and booming as he instructed them that if they were to carry on to his airship they had to partake of his brew.

Leon was the next to take that vessel, drawing a long gulp from it before handing it off to Cloud. A few errant sparkles of green light accompanied a reaction similar to my own, him shrinking down to become proportional to myself. It wasn't long until both Cloud and Cid joined us.

As one, we turned for the door.

The gnome suddenly appeared before us, reduced to our size without any apparent need for his potion. "Let's be on our way. The Fortress of Doors awaits."

Passing through the door and the strange swirling green mass that rested beyond it, we appeared on a sharp overhang next to what had to be the second most crudely constructed vessel I'd ever seen, the first being a rough raft I recalled at times in the corners of my depleted brain. Cid was scoffing, his voice rough as he growled that he was amazed that the thing was able to stay airborne and wondering if the little gnome thought that it would stay aloft with all of us in its tiny basket.

"Stop being such a fucking coward, Cid," Leon growled before marching forward, apparently having no doubts or concern about the vehicle's stability. He jumped with ease into the basket in its front, taking a seat and crossing his ankles with casual ease.

Cloud ducked his head, a wheezy sigh escaping his lungs. "Alright. Let's go, then," he muttered, his voice cold and dead before he joined the eager silver-eyed man in the vessel's passenger compartment.

I had to gulp down apprehension before I took an experimental jump into the basket myself, sinking my claws into the edges of the wicker construction to keep myself braced and upright.

Cid snarled a few colorful curses before queasily making his way into the vehicle as well, staring cautiously up at the inflated sack that kept us aloft even as the old man who'd decided to assist the Cheshire Cat's apparent wards in reaching their next destination leapt onto the bicycle seat in the rear of the craft. Setting his feet to the pedals, he started to turn the propellers attached to the back of the strange craft.

We slowly puttered away from the odd rocky mountain with its squirming tentacles reaching desperately for freedom, from the entrapped village with its doomed people.

The airship carried us towards a fortress that floated in the strange air, colorful swirls of wind surrounding it and twirling doors and clocks about in its patterned skies, its hovering form apparently anchored by tentacles so very similar to those slimy extensions that bored through the village's mountain we'd just escaped. Tentacles that writhed through the walls, puncturing the solid structure mercilessly and twisting into the crumbling floating foundation that kept it from toppling into oblivion.

Setting down on a protected edge, the gnome nodded to us. "Venture forth. Your next portal rests within the library. You must make haste to the Caterpillar's Plot if you're to meet Rabbit as the Cheshire Cat's directed you. Go. Save us from the shadows that plague us."

None of us had any words for him as he turned his craft away and flew back into the impenetrable darkness.

_-tbc-_

A side note – I've started to experiment in plushie sewing. My first attempt is borderline suckage. But in some strange view, it's almost cute. Because it IS borderline suckage (and because it's made of felt, and if I'm going to keep one around I want it to be made of flannel – I just couldn't find any without a pattern) I'm thinking of giving it away with a little contest.

It's a sizable plushie of the 'Wonderland Aquamarine-eyed Shadow Heartless.' Pictures are going to be posted and the link will be provided off of my profile page once I return from our skirmishes out at sea.

I'm thinking that, until the end of July, if anyone's interested, that I'll open up a small fanfic writing contest – write a day on the gummi; no restrictions, no POV requirements. Just a day on the gummi during 'Behind Closed Doors.' Can be the Sora group of the Final Fantasy crew for all I care. Please use the 'email' link off my profile page (I don't trust ff. net to not eat anything I put here) to submit.

Favorite fic gets its writer the plushie. In the event of a tie, I'll have another party review the fics and choose one. You must be willing to provide me with a mailing address to receive it, of course! Otherwise there's no way I can get it there. :P

Review replies:

scarlettHuntress: (breaks into laughter) Aw, your poor boyfriend. Shoved aside for a fic. I'm honored! (LMAO) Glad you've enjoyed the newest chapters so much!

Dark Mog: Thank you SO much for your insight on the personas of Lex and Zex. It was nice to know that my view is reflected out there. My decision for Zex being DID was actually my pondering his complete change in actions and decisions once Lex was gone – it was almost bone-jarring how much he shifted, going from hiding and sniffing out what was going on to facing Lex's murderer face to face. Not exactly reflective of the personality he'd displayed the entire game, so that left me pondering what could bring about such a change – after hours of consideration, my brain laughed hysterically and told me to make him DID. For information about dissociative identity disorder, hit up www. sidran. org/ didbr. html (as always, remove the spaces). It's not the most informative of sites, but it covers the basics well enough. The contrast in relationships, BTW, was something I particularly loved to write. Trying to write a piece like the LexZex one without any true emotional connection between the characters was actually more difficult than I thought, and I felt the need to explain why there was no romance presented in those scenes, hence my delving into the emotionless state of Nobodies. Glad you enjoyed that! And… eh… sheesh. So few… (whimpers sadly) We need more LexZex! Feh! I think I found a new writing direction. (evil cackle) As for your nitpicking, THANKS! Seriously. Playing CoM on a GBA, I wasn't able to see that Lex has blue eyes. I was barely able to make out that Zex has 'em. Sometimes they even looked brown. Crap. I've edited that. As for the references as Xemnas, I can explain that (and I'm sorry that it's awkward, but I did have my reasons). Zexion doesn't remember who he was before – the only time he refers to Lexaeus to his 'pre-experiment' name of Elaeus is when his alternate ego is in effect, and considering there's a fairly deep connection between those two characters there's no reason to assume that the recognition would be extended to other characters. Hence why Zex calls him Xemnas. Lexaeus called him Xemnas because all of his reflections on the Superior were being made of him after the experiment that split Xehanort into his two separate components, the 'Ansem' Heartless (crap. When I first typed this sentence, I actually typed 'plushie' instead of 'Heartless') and the 'Xemnas' Nobody. It was the Nobody that was with them, hence the reference. Oh, and the scans? Marluxia HATE. Geh. I was twitching violently. Thanks for the long and in depth review! I enjoyed reading it. :)

DarkStarPhoenix: Aw, I'm so sorry. (huggles of comfort) Thanks for the short review – it's better than nothing. Until that time, at least there's fandom to fill in the void, yes? BTW, if you need any hints once you get the game, let me strut my gaming madness skills. Actually got 100 completion. The strategy guide is good, but it's lacking in telling you exactly what you can expect from a few of the wretched mini-games (takes a moment to curse the bastards that wrote it). At least there's only 6 months! That's the length of the cruise I had to do knowing it was coming out and I'd be unable to get it until I got back to the states. Feh. :P ((or you could do what desperate people like me do – get another region's PS2 and buy it from another region. Kinda what I did just so I could play the X/1999 fighting game. Makes me want to buy Xenosaga 3 as soon as it comes out, even though I won't be able to understand half of the dialogue. (laughs)))

(runs away screaming from the last chapter screaming. The plushie points at her and cackles before pointing to the 'submit review' feature) SUBMIT! All hearts are born of darkness. Even yours! (stops her panicked flee, blinks and turns, muttering, "Wow. That made zero sense.")


	31. Robots

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 31  
The Keyblade Master – Robots

I couldn't help but stare at the wild looking old man. "Doctor Reinhardt, eh?" I slowly stated before flashing my friendliest of grins. "I'm Sora. This is Donald, and that's Goofy."

Donald was too busy looking around with curiosity shining in his big blue eyes to pay attention to the fact that I'd attempted to introduce him to the venerable scientist. Goofy was kind enough to lift his hand with a merry 'Hyuck' and grant our inadvertent host a wave.

"Sorry about dropping in like this," I muttered, lifting my fingers to lightly scratch at my cheek in a gesture of bashful sheepishness, "but our ship was damaged by the asteroids out there that are being drawn in by the black hole. I was wondering if perhaps you could help us make some repairs?"

The old man chuckled softly, walking to my side and patting me lightly on my shoulder. "Sora, you say? You and your friends are welcome here. Surely I will see what my crew can do to assist you. However, I must ask; whatever is your ship made of? I've been scanning it for awhile, and have never seen anything of its like."

Donald instantly snapped to attention, his bill open in astonishment. "You've been scanning us?" With an angry warbling ducky snarl, he shook his fist. "Then why didn't you tell us you were there? What if we'd missed you? We'd be sucked into the black hole and killed by now!"

The man's lips curled in a slight sneer. "We were damaged by meteorites as well, little feathered friend Donald. Our main and our auxiliary communications arrays were damaged. We were left adrift. It's only through my development of my anti-gravitational forces that we were able to maintain our position beyond the event horizon, safe even within the pull of the black hole."

"How the heck… who prepares for such a thing? To be this close to a black hole?" I questioned with wonder in my eyes.

"Where is it you're from, boy?" the venerable man asked, arching a brow.

"Oh. Destiny Islands, Doctor," I politely answered.

Mr. Reinhardt's thick brows arched. "Destiny Islands, you say? Funny, but I've never heard of such a place. I'm well versed in the geography of Earth."

"Earth?" I softly mouthed. "No, Destiny Islands is its own world, so far as I know."

"It's own world? How very intriguing," he proclaimed, his sneer becoming a wrinkled grin as his eyes narrowed and glistened. "And where can this world of yours be found, Sora?"

"Um," I began, dropping my gaze to the floor and pondering the answer to that question. "I can't begin to tell you, sir. It was swallowed by darkness, then cut off from the rest of the worlds when the barriers between the worlds was restored when we locked the door to Kingdom Hearts. I don't know. If I did…."

Goofy finished politely with a shrug and a muttered, "If we knew where Destiny Islands was, Sora would've gone ta visit his friend Kairi by now."

"Hm. I see," Doctor Reinhardt said, lifting his hand to lightly rub his beard as he pondered what he'd been told. "So there are indeed other worlds out there capable of producing intelligent life. Fascinating."

"So what are you doing out here next to a black hole?" Donald interjected, snarling as he attempted to steer the ambling Doctor back to our original inquiry before he'd side-tract me with his question.

The man's lips curled back into that discomforting sneer. "If you are not of Earth, then you do not know of Project Black Hole. The glorious project to study the greatest, most mysterious phenomena the universe has to offer, and perhaps, just perhaps, learn what is on the other side of that phenomena."

"That's crazy!" I immediately blurted.

"Yeah!" Donald quickly agreed.

A beeping suddenly filled the room, coming from one of the computer panels that filled the massive control center we were in. The Doctor immediately held up a hand to indicate his desires for our silence, then walked over to the manned station, laying his hand lightly on the shoulder of the robed being that sat before it. Looking at the screen, he frowned, muttering quietly, "Do they not have control of their vessel? Why are they drifting so closely?"

"Uh, what's goin' on?" Goofy asked, looking down at me with expectant eyes.

"I have no clue," I grumped back, looking at him with a shrug.

"I think I do," Donald said, tugging on my short hooded jacket's sleeve. "Look out the window over there!"

I quickly traced the path the duck was pointing out. A gasp leaked from my lips.

A small ship was spiraling errantly around the _Cygnus_, its probe light shining brightly on its surface. "What the heck?" I questioned.

Even as I stared, the Doctor gestured to one of his robed assistants. "Activate the lighting system. Ensure they see us. And…" he paused, gathering himself for a smirk, "give them a nice place to land. I want to see who my newest guests are. Maybe they'll be as intriguing as our little Sora and his friends."

I couldn't rip my eyes away from the view outside of the massive control room's window. As computers behind me beeped and whirred, something far in the distance crackling audibly as it exuded more power, the ship slowly began to glow. Soft yellow and orange lighting raced to live along its massive structure.

"Wow," I quietly breathed. I'd never seen a craft so cool! It was gorgeous.

I heard Doctor Reinhardt chuckle quietly. "I see you appreciate the _Cygnus._"

"It's an awesome ship, sir," I honestly replied.

"As is yours! And you never did answer my question. What material is it created of?"

Donald crossed his arms, his webbed foot smacking the ground repetitiously as he tapped it impatiently on the metal grating we stood on. "Gummi blocks," he finally ground out.

"Gummi blocks?" Mr. Reinhardt repeated, a bushy brow arching.

"Never heard of them?" Donald all but hissed.

"No," the old man admitted. "Perhaps, though, we can find something suitable to make some emergency repairs to your vessel so that you may continue on your way."

Putting my hand on Donald's shoulder, I nodded. "That would be very kind of you, Doctor. Thanks!"

"They're landin'," Goofy announced, pointing out the window.

"Good, good," the Doctor said with a smirk. "Then if you do not mind the wait, Sora, I would like to speak with our new arrivals as well. If their ship is in similar need of repair, then I can send you both with a common escort to my parts storage facility."

"I don't have a problem with that, sir," I replied with a firm nod.

"I'm going go," Donald snorted. "You don't know what you're looking at when it comes to gummies."

"Yer gonna need help carryin' stuff," Goofy interjected.

"And you aren't the most knowledgeable either, Donald. I'll come along. I have a copy of the gummi manual, after all!" a helpful voice chirped from my hood.

"Yeah. You guys go," I agreed, slowly and discretely removing Jiminy from my hood and handing him with delicate care to Donald without the Doctor noticing our exchange, taking the opportunity as he perused his monitors to look over the newly arrived ship and the progression of its crew through his own vessel's massive corridors. "I'll keep him busy." Then dropping my voice a bit, I muttered, "He seems like he has good intentions, but something about him creeps me out. I'll keep an eye on him and keep him distracted while you guys get the gummi recharged and repaired."

"You sure you can handle it on your own?" Donald asked, his eyes bright with actual concern.

I flashed him a lopsided grin. "Of course. Just watch yourselves, alright?"

I almost jumped out of my skin as I heard a volatile whoosh beside me, quickly turning my attention.

The elevator's doors had just opened, leaving four adults and one very strange little floating robot who looked something like a cross between a huge bowling ball and Push-Pop with all sorts of flickering lights all over it staring with bewildered expressions at the massive control room with its conglomeration of computers and beautiful view of the swirling mass of death that was so very close and being so curiously denied the pleasure of ripping the _Cygnus_ apart.

The solitary woman of the group, her hazel eyes bright and her short curly dirty-blonde hair bouncing as she stepped out of the elevator, was the first to segregate herself from the stunned gathering, lifting her chin slightly, her voice almost quaking nervously. "Hello? I'm Kate McCrae. Is Officer Frank McCrae aboard?"

She was asking for someone in particular? Oh! They knew this ship!

I looked around the room curiously. I knew the Doctor was absorbed in his computers, being the almost crazy guy that he portrayed himself as. It didn't surprise me that he didn't pipe up to give away his presence and acknowledge his new guests he'd waited so impatiently for. However, I'd expect someone else to say something.

Instead my ears were met with a strange buzzing silence.

The tin-can of a robot hovered to the woman's side, the cylinder of orange that connected the silvery 'cap' atop its head to the round floating body with its lights turning to face its hollow square 'eyes' on her. "They appear to be some sort of robot, Dr. Kate," its thin mechanized tenor voice statically proclaimed.

"Look over there," one of the three men that had accompanied her, this one a striking figure in a white flight suit to separate him from his companions, a head of thick black hair and dark, inquisitive eyes stated as he stepped forward.

I couldn't help but slide towards them, remaining silent, observing them as they walked almost dreamily into the technological marvel that was the _Cygnus'_ control room.

The gray-haired individual of the group, dressed in his dark gray jumpsuit, let his mouth slag open a touch. "Incredible," he mouthed, answered to quickly by the more portly man who, unlike the others who were bedecked in flight suits, was dressed in a conventional and comfortable looking pair of slacks and a sweater. That man with his head of dark hair that showed signs of graying and his lined face snorted ruefully, his voice bordering on a snide laugh, as he blurted, "It ought to be. Sure cost the taxpayers enough."

Turning, the grayed man in his jumpsuit arched a brow. "Kate, there's someone else with us."

I sheepishly approached from the shadows, lifting my hand in kind greeting to the three.

My emergence was a bit overshadowed by the appearance of a robot I'd failed to notice before, probably owing to the fact that it had been hovering far above us. I swallowed an unconscious gulp of fear, cringing as I heard Donald's queasy, sheepish laugh of nervousness and Goofy's nearly whimpered 'gawrsh.'

It was a dark orange-red color, something like brushed brass that had been reddened by stains. A massive red slit placed upon the helmet-like head served as an 'eye slit' or optical entry point. Its limbs stuck at harsh right angles, stiffly projecting up and down at its sides. Its movements were slow and purposeful as it descended towards the new arrivals that Doctor Reinhardt had failed to properly greet thus far.

The little silver tin-can robot approached, its top rising significantly and displaying more of the orange cylinder that served it as a face than before. Its metallic voice verily boomed as it made its challenge present to the huge monster that was continuing its threatening approach, blurting, "Identify yourself. What is your type and model?"

I gasped as the reddish robot raised an 'arm' on either side of its body, silver points projecting forward. Those points snapped open into a pair of jagged fanlike projections. A gulp leaked down my throat once again.

I quickly brought Ultima Weapon to my hand, suddenly glad that I'd not bothered changing out keychains since my encounter with the Leviathan while saving Pete and his world from the Heartless. "Hey, back off!" I shouted, charging forward to stand between the group of people and the two robots.

The men and woman looked at me with shock evident in their eyes, even as the robot with the orange cylinder head proclaimed, "A mystery monster!"

The dark-haired man in the white flight suit behind me shouted, "Don't move. Charlie, do ya read me? Charlie Pizer? Come in, Charlie." A few moments slid past before he growled softly, "This is the story to end all stories, Harry. A ship full of robots with this thing in charge?"

I heard my sneaker squeak on the ground below me, watching out of the corner of my eye as Donald started running towards the paired robots with Save The Queen ready in his hand and Goofy cowered behind his shield. "Not another inch closer, you… thing," I snarled at the robot with the wildly whipping blades.

"Not quite, Alex," the old man I'd initially met when inducted into the control room of the _Cygnus_ suddenly said from the nearby shadows. "Maximilian and my robots only run the ship the way I wish it to be run."

The gray-haired man gasped behind me, asking, "How do you know my name?"

The venerable Doctor chuckled. "You were monitored ever since our sensors first detected you." With a swift gesture to the robot dubbed 'Maximilian' he smiled. "Now, now, Maximilian. Calm down. Don't pick on small people."

I sighed softly in relief as it slowly lowered its blades.

"Such a nice little robot. He's harmless," Doctor Reinhardt laughed.

"Harmless?" I interjected. "Those things could have really hurt someone!"

He looked blandly at me. "As could that odd thing you're holding. Now wherever did that come from, Sora?"

I sheepishly looked down at Ultima Weapon before sending it back to the depths of my heart, my face hardening and my lips curling with a frown. "None of your business," I grumbled.

"But it is my business, especially if you are to partake of my hospitality," Mr. Reinhardt said with a smirk. "We will discuss it later. For now," he stated, turning his attention away from me and gesturing to the only woman in the control room, "Miss McCrae, you might come closer."

I grumped as I backed away, returning to stand with Donald and Goofy even while maintaining a careful watch on Maximilian.

As the woman named Kate McCrae approached the wily doctor, he smiled and nodded. "Welcome aboard the _Cygnus,_" he said with a congenial touch of her shoulder, to which the others in the control room immediately gasped, "Hans Reinhardt!" and "It can't be!"

"You always had a flare for theatrical entrances, Doctor!" the portly man said with a grin.

I sighed and turned my attention away, instead facing Donald and Goofy. "Well, guys, looks like we're stuck for awhile. We've got to bide our time until we can get some spare parts, and figure out how we're going to refuel the gummi."

Jiminy poked his head out of one of Donald's many pouches, piping up with a grin. "The gummi's fuel cells will recharge, given enough time. What we've got to worry about is that wing!"

"Yeah, tell me about it," Donald huffed.

I cocked my head, barely overhearing Doctor Reinhardt tell Kate that her father was dead and the original crew of the _Cygnus_ abandoned ship after the ship was damaged by a meteorite shower that knocked out their primary and auxiliary communications arrays – exactly what he'd told us when Donald had lambasted him for not reaching out to assist us when he'd first detected us. Cringing, I sighed as I heard the set of people that had arrived shortly after myself proclaim that it had been twenty years since the _Cygnus_ was apparently recalled, and that it was so amazing that the Doctor had been out there alone all that time, to which he professed that his dear robots kept him company, their medieval looks owed to his romanticism.

"Well, he said he'd help us. We just have to give him time. The man's been alone for awhile – he probably just wants to yuck it up with his visitors for a little while before sending us all on our way," I muttered to my friends.

"That's you, Sora," Goofy said with a bright grin. "Always supposin' the best about everyone."

"Well, come on! Everyone can't be so terrible, or the universe would be swallowed completely by Heartless by this point, neh?" I said with a slight smile. "Anyway, let's just settle down and relax a bit."

I couldn't help but turn and stare as the elevator door opened again, another man in a flight suit being escorted out by laser toting robot sentries. He set a firm glare at the Doctor as Mr. Reinhardt merrily proclaimed, "Ah, Mr. Pizer. Come in. Join us."

Walking forward, the newest man to enter the control room growled, "Thank you," before turning to his companions. "Have you met the goon squad?" he asked.

"Goon squad. Nice. I'm Hans Reinhardt. Forgive this little incident, but you were disarmed for your own safety," the Doctor proclaimed before sending the robot sentries away with a quick order. Returning his attention to his other visitors, he smirked. "My robots are programmed to react against any form of aggression."

I tore my attention away as the continued to converse, their murmuring ranging from how long they intended to remain to whether or not the Doctor wanted to return to Earth. I instead shrugged to Donald and Goofy. "Robots programmed to react against any form of aggression? I wonder why?"

Donald scratched the bottom of his bill and frowned. "It's fishy, Sora," he growled at me. "Why would he need security robots if all of his crew is gone and he's got nothing but robots keeping him company? After all, robots that are controlled by you aren't going to rebel or be hostile."

"Eh, maybe his robots can act on their own? Kinda like that Maximilian guy!" Goofy suggested.

"Makes no sense. I'd think robots can only react as they're programmed to," I said with a frown. "So if a robot's hostile, it's because he made it specifically to behave that way. I don't get it."

"Hm," Donald intoned quietly, crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't like it. We'd better be careful."

"Got'cha," I agreed with a nod. "Tell you what. When they finally decide to let us go for parts, we'll split up. You and Goofy go get the parts and fix the gummi. I'll stay here and keep an eye on Reinhardt."

"I don't like that, Sora," Goofy instantly stated, his eyes huge with worry. "What if you get in trouble?"

"I've got the Keyblade. No worries, guys. I won't hesitate to use it," I reassured them. "I'm sure it'll have some effect on anything that would threaten me. You two make certain to be careful, alright?"

Before my companions could raise any further concerns, our attention was wrenched away by the newest man in the control room, Charlie, shouting, "Back off, Vincent!"

The small can-shaped robot growled in its tinny voice, "Not until he does."

"Woah!" I gasped, staring at the sight. Some time during our private conversation, the small robot had decided to go head to head with Maximilian, its head pulled slightly into its body for protection against the huge beast. "What the heck?"

The man named 'Charlie' leaned forward and growled out to the robot he'd called 'Vincent,' "When you're nose to nose with a trash compactor, you cool it."

The venerable Doctor Reinhardt's voice chuckled softly. "Now what does that remind me of? Oh yes! David and Goliath." Taking his seat at the head of the control room, he sneered. "Classic confrontation. Only this time, David is overmatched."

Maximilian began to steadily approach Charlie and Vincent, its red eye slit glowing menacingly. My fingers twitched – Ultima Weapon was calling to me, begging me to call it into reality. There was something about that robot my heart couldn't bring itself to like.

"Call him off, Reinhardt!" the black-haired man in the white flight suit called. A few tense moments passed as Vincent elevated its floating mass to stare Maximilian right in its proverbial eye. "I said call him off!"

Doctor Reinhardt snarled, "On my ship you ask, Captain."

"Indeed," the black-haired captain snorted. "Please, call him off, Doctor," he humbly asked a few seconds later.

Sneering, Reinhardt nodded before facing the murderously dangerous robot. "Maximilian. Remember. These are our guests. Now let him in."

I shuddered, watching as Maximilian slowly backed away, barely hearing Reinhardt chuckle out "Show that you've good manners. That's a good robot."

I slowly made my way towards the other group of people in the control room, shivering.

"Communication problems aside, he took a long time to show any lights. Be careful," the dark-haired captain said to the woman who'd earlier been identified as 'Kate.'

"I know," she instantly replied.

Walking off towards the elevator and stepping alongside the floating silver can-shaped robot, the white-clothed captain snorted, "Those other robots aren't any friendlier than Dr. Frankenstein's monsters."

The robot snorted, "The bigger they are, the harder they fall."

"Are you guys getting parts now?" Donald quickly asked the captain.

"I believe so. You here for the same purpose?" he asked, arching a brow.

"Sure are!" Goofy replied before he and Donald joined Charlie, Vincent and the captain on the elevator with Maximilian. The door whooshed shut and the elevator descended.

I sighed as I stood near Kate, watching that vessel whisk my friends away. "Be careful," I quietly instructed to my departed companions.

_-tbc-_

* * *

Yep, decided that the Shadow Heartless plushie will be given away at the end of July. So off we go on a contest! A day on the gummi. Either group – doesn't matter. Favorite entry gets it, provided the sender gives a mailing addy that it can get to. Send to the email addy on my profile to ensure I get it, whether out to sea or not. Pictures are provided off of:

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ plushie. html

As is usual, remove the spaces. Enjoy!

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Review replies:

littlekittykat: Awww, I'm actually gushing. I consider a creepy as all billy heck Wonderland a heck of a compliment! Thanks:)

DarkStarPhoenix: Heh heh. Glad you liked my Cid description. Picturing the old geezer like a sun-dried prune made me snigger. And yes, the cards do indeed bleed all over the place. Heck, when hit with the right weapons they blow into meaty chunks. Yummy. (nod nod) And of course Riku gets a go! He's the catalyst of the story, after all! Neh heh heh. Glad to hear you have some KH2 compensation. I understand the heck out of your pain. (shudder) Kind of like I'm bouncing around waiting impatiently for Xenosaga 3. Could chew my leg off – but FF8 (again, and doing much better this time around) is staving the urge to send body parts to Japan to convince them to release it in North America sooner. :P

Dark Mog: You know, it'd been years since I'd played the game, and I _still_ remember all the areas I'm going through. It's freaky how strong of an impression that game makes. The graphics compared to modern day games aren't quite as impressive as they were back in the day, but the Cheshire Cat never fails to send a tingle down the spine and even though I remember every tragic event happening they still draw sniffles and gasps. (merry grin) I love that freaking game. And glad you found the DID link helpful. As said, it's not the most complete conglomeration of information available, but it's a nice, concise little overview. And I'm glad you're not questioning Leon's changing behavior – all I have to say, though, is just wait. Just wait. The mental play with those four unfortunates has barely begun. LexZex has been an obvious couple in my mind since I played CoM – I'd just never really considered writing fanfiction for them! In fact, I wasn't going to do any KH stuff – BCD is only my third KH fic, after all. I'm one of those ridiculous fools who feels she must know next to everything about a series before delving into the fun of playing with the characters (hence why I haven't written any Xenosaga stuff, even though I abso-friggin'-lutely heart the damned series – I don't know enough about chaos (re: they haven't revealed shit about him) to make the kind of fic I want to write. Craptastic). I never realized that LexZex needs the help it does. I'm already writing one about them. Should have it done in a week or so, provided vacation doesn't get in the way. :) Nobodies and their inconsistencies make them a veritable headache – but I attribute all of this to the fact that KH2 holds plot consistency about as well as a sieve holds water. Love the game, but try to think about it and prepare for migraines comparable to Squally's worst. (I still shudder at the thought of the pink scythe and my coworkers snarking, "Hey, Wendy! You just got your ass blasted by a pink flower!" with me screaming, "I know, shit birds. Shut up so I can beat this twit! GAH! LASER-SHOOTING-FLOWER PETALS!")

scarletHuntress: (sheepish laugh, rubs the back of her head) I know, I know. But Leon pointed his freaking scary gunblade at me and snarled that he wanted to stay in character, so I'm following his direction. Plus First Tsurugi is damned frightening when Cloud's breathing down your neck for the same thing. (giggle) Well, there _will_ be some action coming up… just pro'lly not what you're expecting. (runs away) Thanks for the review, BTW!

Li the Twilight Knight: Ah, public access only. Gaw, am I ever familiar with that. Sucks. But some access is irrefutably better than no access, neh? So, just going to _mention_ that you read the bonus chapter? (squirms around, wondering how she did) Damn it! Guess I'll have to wait for that real review. (le sulk)

Cringe: Hey, thanks for the review! Unfortunately my updates have kind of slowed, but I'm working pretty desperately on them – had to script out the entire 'Black Hole' movie. Geh. Hope you liked my newest chapter!

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(giggles gleefully as she hugs her copy of 'The Black Hole') Gaw, I love this movie! So cheesy, yet so awesome! (the plushie simply guffaws at her before turning and patting the 'submit review' feature) 


	32. Advance

A moment of unhappiness - sorry this chapter came out so late, but I had to deal with the death of one of my cats right before an underway. So the mood's a bit screwy, the authoress notes and review replies are oddly happy compared to the rest of the chapter as they were written prior to this little tragedy in my life, and... bleh. That's all I have to say about this right now.

On a slightly brighter side note, I figured out how to post updates even with my lack of a word processing program on the unclass lan while out to sea. It's almost more of a pain in the ass than it's worth, but I was thinking you guys might appreciate an update after that 'ugh' Sora chapter. So it's back to the FF group that everyone latches on to, leaving Sora to flail in the dust.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) More authoress' notes are located at the bottom. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

Thanks for 100+ reviews, people! A small gift featuring my craptastic doodling skills is located at:  
www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ 100reviews. jpg  
As always, remove the spaces.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 31  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Advance

I stared at the enormous and intimidating structure that burst out of the scraggly, crumbling floating foundation before us.

It was an odd blurb on the swirling mass of careless dark colors traipsing chaotically through the seemingly unending sky that stretched both above and below us, staining its consuming midnight curtain with an even more foredboding and black hulk of misshapen, seemingly misplaced material. The puce-colored tentacles that proliferated the caverns of the repressed peoples we'd just traveled from bore through the structure we were facing, their writhing lengths piercing through the fortress' thick walls effortlessly and their continually gyrating movement tearing away at the firm structure without any viable effort.

"Whoa, talk about the shivers," Cid gruffly snarled. Rubbing his arms fitfully, he cast his gleaming glare at the rest of us, his grit teeth grinding the butt of his cigarette to near paste. "Just what exactly do you guys expect to do here,anyway?"

"Hunt down Rabbit," the little Shadow at my side said with a casual shrug even as he tightened his grip on that butcher knife of his. "We need him to contact Alice so that she might repair Wonderland, after all. Our only real purpose is to remove the blight of the Heartless in her heart."

"And we're wasting time. The Cat said time is of the essence. Move it," Leon bit, his eyes practically glowing with unspent adrenaline. Gripping his gunblade tightly, he tromped away from us and began to steadfastly make his way towards the only entrance into the vast buliding before us that we could see - a huge rift in the fortress' side, very likely made by one of those jiggling tentacles we'd been hoping around int he doomed village we'd left behind, now standing empty and barren as if inviting us in to experience what lay beyond those menacing dark walls.

Leon swiftly took point, stepping through that crevice without any fear marking his movements. I stepped before Cid, determined to back up the silver-eyed warrior if necessary.

My concern for his safety was well placed - the moment we stepped through the torn wall and found ourselves on a narrow path that traced along the interior walls of the rather large room we'd entered and provided a walkway to the next door that handily avoided the humongous hole in the room's center that sported an oddly floating schoolhouse with strange screams and laughter leaking from it, we were attacked.

I stared as a creature with a skull for a head and tattered, decayed robes for a body floated down from above, its robes slowly spreading to reveal a rotting chest cavity with gangrenous organs festering between yellowed bones sported chunks of maggot-infested browned meat. As those robes further parted, it revealed its skeletal arms, strings of muscle still clinging desperately to them by sickly white tendon ropes, bony fingers clenching in the night-like air. Its jaws parted.

I cried out as its scream barreled over us, my eardrums throbbing painfully, wet blood oozing from my ears to dribble its thick warmth towards my jaw line. Cid's powerful voice shouting obscenities at the creature barely registered to my drumming head as I covered my aching ears with my palms, First Tsurugi clattering to the ground. Vomit stained the back of my tongue as the world swirled violently in my vision, the onset of vertigo driving me easily to my knees. The remains of the last meal I ate accompanied bile as the mess burst from my lips to splatter across the floor and on my knees.

Leon sprang away from us in an apparent race for safety even as the little Shadow stood over me, throwing that butcher knife of his with surprising accuracy. I shuddered as, rather than a directed piercing banshee's scream, the creature unleashed with a hellish sob of pain as it burst into surprisingly warm flames and whithered into nonexistence, leaving that knife which had pierced its decayed heart to clatter on the ground.

Even as I watched the Shadow swiftly retrieve his knife, I located Leon charging headlong into wriggling, squirming shadows that had been leaking unnoticed during my moments of vertigo into reality, his race having not been for safety but rather for enemies we'd failed to see. His scream of rage rang within my skull, pounding as fiercely as the metallic clang of his gunblade ricocheting off of the strongly built walls of the room in which we fought and the large boulders that flanked our skinny path around the giant chasm that marred the floor's structure, that weapon bounding from stone and mortar as it finished ridiculously easy swings through painfully thick Heartless forces. The amount of strength that was driving that blade was far in excess of what was necessary, that proven by the slashes that decorated the surroundings where he stood his ground.

"Leon!" I cried out as I watched the shadows writhe around him, dark forms bursting into being, some with the odd red crossed-out heart emblem marking their bodies and others completely free of adornment. His eyes were wide as he staggered back a step, lashing forth with his weapon to drive his multiplying attackers away.

I swiftly gathered my wits, leaving First Tsurugi where it lay and instead focusing on the darkness that swam within the depths of my soul. Slowly, steadily, every nanosecond an eternity as my horrified eyes watched the gunblader being ripped and shredded by black claws and his blood splattering liquidly on the rocks surrounding him even as that gunblade marvelously shined in glowing archews when it swung and fiery smoke accompanied an explosive roar from the barrel it sported, I unraveled the mental chains I normally forced over the physical evidence of my tarnished state.

My cape fluttered as I threw myself into that empty chasm that occupied the center of the room, Cid's scream of "Cloud, you fucking moron! What the hell!" following my plummeting form. A swift beat of the wing Hades' contract had drawn into reality and seared onto my body granted me enough lift to plant my feet onto the crumbling walls of the hole I was toppling through, changing my trajectory so that I rocketed straight up.

I quickly lashed my arms around Leon's painfully thin waist, tearing him away from the battle he was so immersed in. The sudden change in weight on my hard-worked wing almost drove me immediately from the air; it was only through quick compensation and a series of short hops along the walls of the hole that surrounded the oddly hovering schoolhouse that I managed to stay aloft.

Moments later I was placing my feet on horizontal ground and Leon was growling, his eyes huge and feral on his vitae-stained face, his arms shaking with exhaustion and the continued lust for battle even as his own blood dripped viscously from his fingertips. Silver eyes turned a murderous glare on me after he ripped himself out of my grip. "Why did you do that, Cloud?" he bit, his voice harsh and unforgiving.

I couldn't help but wilt before him. "I..."

"Never fucking mind," he snapped before turning sharply. "You've left them in danger, you know," Leon reprimanded moments later, pointing to where Cid and the Shadow were valiantly struggling against those Heartless the gunblade wielder had riled and I had left without a battle.

"Hey!" I shouted across the empty space that separated us. "Cid! Find a way to get over here!"

"Fuckin' easy for you to say, you blond spiky-headed idiot," he immediately screamed at me, his movements slightly hindered as he wildly swung Venus Gospel into a glimmering silvery circle that promised death by the large blade I'd left behind that he'd mercifully picked up and hung from the thick wrap around his waist, apparently expecting to return it to me later or at least keep it safe. "Not all of us are freaking shit-full of that Mako Jenova shit that lets morons like you fucking float around and bitch your... gaw damn it, you shadowy fuck, help me out a bit!"

I whimpered as I watched my old friend fighting valiantly, the Shadow covering his back with the small blade I'd stripped from First Tsurugi's side and dropped on the floor, his butcher knife still gripped tightly in his off-hand. Looking up, I gasped as I finally noticed what just might serve as my friend's path to salvation. "Cid! The walkway gets close to the window on the second story! Make it into the schoolhouse, adn we'll meet you there. Shouldn't be too bad."

"You expect me to work fucking miracles, you bastardized whore-licking bitch of a moron! How the hell do you expect us to get there?" Cid screeched.

"We'll meet you there!" the Shadow's light voice pounded across the vast space between us before he wrapped his dark little claws around the base of Cid's Venus Gospel and started to run, fortunately catching the wily old pilot off balance and enabling even something so tiny as him to drag the blond forcibly along by his spear.

As they vanished from sight through the only door available to them, the Heartless hot on their heels and the screams of another one of those rotting banshees pouring through the air from beyond those walls they'd just ducked behind, I let my head droop.

"Let's get in," Leon ordered.

"Hey, have a fucking heart for a second, will you?" I hissed. "They're alone. They might very well die. I have to get back there and help them!"

"No, you're going to get in that building and we're going to find where that window is that you kindly pointed out for them," he replied, his silver eyes as hard as the metal that comprised his gunblade.

"Leon," I growled, "they need help."

"They need to defend themselves and get here quickly. Quit pandering to others, Cloud. Come on."

"I don't follow your orders.

"I realize that," Leon snorted quietly, his eyes still focused on me with dire intent. "If you go back there, I won't be there to watch your back. You're coming with me so I can keep you safe."

"I don't need anyone watching my back!" I bit, stepping before him so I could reflect his indignant glare with my glowing Mako eyes. "I'm not someone who needs protecting, Leon," my voice hissed. "I was in SOLDIER. First class."

He arched a brow as he looked critically at me. "Oh really. Tell me another one, Cloud. You don't fight like a trained soldier; your 'style' is more like the flailing of a trapped animal trying to look more dangerous than it truly is. Plus you have the planning capability of an autistic three-year-old. Shut up. We're going in."

Without giving me a chance to retort, he snatched my wrist in his hand and forcibly dragged me towards the doors of the looming schoolhouse we were before.

"Don't watch my back," I growled as he finally let me go after forcing me to follow him a good fifteen feet beyond the large double doors we'd entered through. I glanced back as I heard antiquated hinges squeal in protest of being used and roughly hewed wood rubbing over knotted, imperfect floorboards. My eyes narrowed slightly as I watched the doors we'd just passed through shut of their own accord. "If you're going to watch anyone's back, Leon, you should watch your own."

"In other words, don't expect you to watch it for me."

"I don't give favors that I don't want in turn," I huffed as I crossed my arms.

"Even though you don't have a weapon? Fucking moron. You should accept the help when you need it," Leon chastised, shaking his head slowly. "Guess you'll have to make due with another weapon for now. Maybe some of that materia shit you packed."

"Left that on the gummi, Leon. Like you left your belts and your jacket."

"Oh... right. So you'll just be useless until you get something in your hands." With a snort while he calmly ignored my dagger-tossing glowers, he walked over to a nearby set of stairs with a slender, rusting handrail running along it.

Lionhart flashed brightly, its neon blue blade hissing before sparks flew through the dark air and a chunk of that railing was sliced cleanly free. Picking it up, he tossed the makeshift club to me. "Here. Make yourself useful with that."

"Geez, Leon. Guess I will," I snorted. Since when had he gotten so very rude?

I mean, it's not like he was the pinnacle of political correctness and consideration before, but this seemed a bit extreme; it was as if he didn't care what anyone other than himself thought anymore, acting on only his desires - if he desired that something be voiced, he voiced it, darn it, everyone else be damned.

"You'd better be ready," he grunted from before me, laying one of his thin hands on the next set of doors that stood in our way.

"Sure thing," I huffed. "As said, I don't need you to watch my back."

He shrugged without care, his hard eyes glaring at the door as he pressed his fingertips against the gnarled wood. "I don't care what you do. Just stay safe, or else I _will_ be covering your back despite your wishes. I do what I want, and I'll damned make what I want happen. And right now, I want you safe, I want out of this place, and..."

I arched a brow as a strange, almost sinister smile seemed to snake across his lips.

"I want there to be a hell of a battle waiting on the other side of this door."

"Are you crazy?" I meekly whispered, my eyes widening slightly.

I never got my answer - he all but punched that door open, startling the roving cards on the other side. Lionheart glistened in the dark, its bright blue glow an easy identifier for his location. Bright orange fire roared to life, its flickering remains flying from the sharp edge of that gunblade along with its accompanying black smoke, the reverberating bang still echoing in my ears even as the large support beam that had stood proudly and strongly on the other side of the lance-wielding diamond that had just received the brunt of the triggered attack cracked and toppled, punching its way clean through the rotting floor and leaving me with a beautiful view of an endless abyss of black framed by infinitely tall colonnades of books.

Barely noticing the flicker of a heart-shaped projectile flashing towards me, I batted it with deadly accuracy using my piece of handrail right back to the blasted card that had sent the explosive my way. With a slightly satisfied smirk I listened to his curdled death-cry, listened to the separate parts of his body fall with loud splats and thuds onto the old floorboards, listened to the blood that sprayed drip off the railing and between the boards that comprised the catwalk the card had stood upon to splash onto the level I inhabited. "Useless, huh? Fuck that," I muttered to myself, turning to bat every exploding heart-shaped bomb heading towards me back to their unfortunate owners.

Leon was taking the more direct route, having a more competent weapon than a piece of a handrail. He cut a handy swath through the few spades and plentiful diamonds on our level, his pace barely slowing as he shrugged off attack after attack, his blood tracing his wiry arms in thin rivets.

After beating a spade down with my piece of handrail, I snatched the spear he held in his now exceptionally limp hand and flipped it. Deadly sharp point facing the ground, I plowed it right into the fallen card's exposed back, listening to him suddenly snap back into consciousness with an excruciating cry then fade to death.

The death-ridden scream of more of those floating rotting skeletal heaps in their robes with their banshee yells echoed across the room. Grimacing, I turned and hurled my handrail as accurately as I could towards where the sound had originated. A thump met my ears, followed by the burst of flames springing to life.

I let a grin take my lips. Another one of those things was down.

The few cards that were left screamed as they set their eyes upon us, fleeing into the doors beyond. Leon was right on their heels.

I should have let him go alone - I really should have. But something stirred within me, encouraging me to follow.

I'd told him I wouldn't watch his back...

Alright, so I'd lied.

Even though I would steadfastly deny it, even if I would profess to never needing or wanting him and his sword near me or if I were to proclaim that I didn't want to offer him my assistance...

Something inside of me would always be there for him. Something inside of me would always want him at my back to offer his support.

I chased after him, my spear held tightly in my white-knuckled hands.

By the time I reached his side, he was panting, hovering over the decimated chunks that remained of the hearts he'd chased down. "Got 'em," he tiredly muttered.

"Feel better?" I asked. I was silently hoping that the strange episode he'd had before we'd burst into the room, that moment when his eyes had verily _glowed_ silver with lust for death and bloodshed, that second when I had to reassure myself that he had no Mako in his veins and that the glistening in those mercury eyes of his had to be due to lighting, was long over and done.

Wiping his brow, smearing the blood that dribbled from a light scalp wound across his marred forehead, he let his head bobble with a slight nod. Looking me over, he let his lips twist into a slight smile. "Looks like you skated out pretty clean. Only caught shrapnel from one explosion?"

"And got hit by that first banshee," I confessed. "Other than that, injury free. You look like shit, Leon."

What? It was the complete truth.

His shirt was nearly soaked with red blood, the white coloration only visible on one shoulder and upon that cloth that had shifted clear of the waistband, protected by his leather pants from the initial splattering that had stained the rest of him. His pants were coming undone at the seam of the right leg, a long slash and hot blood almost masking the vision of softly tanned skin that would normally be available. His forearms were littered with deep tears from the claws of Heartless, the slashes of glancing lance blows, the splinters of exploded wooden surroundings. A burn mark had his left cheek an angry red color and the hair around that site slightly singed, what bit of beard that had started to form on his face cleanly brushed away by the touch of flame giving him one heck of a lopsided appearance.

"You only have half of your normal stubble," I observed, tyring vainly to lighten the atmosphere a bit.

He snorted coldly at that. "Got a problem with that, Cloud?"

"Not really," I quietly confessed. "Not at all," I almost silently clarified moments later.

Then I was stunned into silence.

His lips were pressed tightly against mine, his bloodied hands gripping my shoulders in an impossibly tight hold, his body fitting almost intimately against my own.

My head swam without control, my mouth slightly opened in a gasp of complete disbelief. Chapped lips were sealed against my own, hot breath racing from his nostrils to brush over my skin. His wet tongue roughly shoved its way between my lips, sliding expertly between my teeth, tasting me before cramming itself against my own tongue in an impromptu battle for cominance within my own mouth. I tried desperately to inhale a breath through my nose, catching a waft of the warm air he exhaled against my cheek and the distinct scent of copper blood combined with sweat and pheromones. His large hands, calloused and rough from their years on his weapon's hilt, squeezed uncomfortably tight on my thin body, blunted and roughly torn fingernails snagging into my cape. One heavy boot pushed its way between my own combat boots, letting him ease his leg between mine, pressing his thigh to my own and pressing his leather clad appendage against my groin.

I almost balked as I felt his leather-bound arousal press against my hip.

My hands instantly found his shoudlers and shoved him away as hard as I could. My bid to drive him off was more than successful; the Mako and Jenova infusion in my veins granted me enough strength to nearly push him through the wall I'd heaved him towards. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" I instantly shouted, my eyes huge on my face.

Leon simply shrugged as he replied, "What I want," before he glanced around to take in his surroundings. Suddenly his eyes were wide, the insane battle-lust gone and replaced with something else. Something I had never seen before, reflected in down-turned lips and a stiffened posture.

Was that... fear? Or disgust?

I took a few deep breaths to calm myself, trying desperately to convince myself that what had just happened wasn't really real, that it wasn't really intentional, even though my brain argued vehemently with me. Finally curiosity over what had drawn his odd expression managed to drum away unpleasant memories and entice me to return to working companionship I'd had with him just a few minutes ago, right before his unexpected advance. Thrusting what had occurred to the deepest recesses of my brain, I returned myself forcibly to the here and now.

Turning to match the direction of his gaze, I felt my stomach heave without control. If I'd not lost the contents of my body to the vertigo caused by the banshee we'd faced earlier, I would have puked a second time.

The sight was horrifying.

Three little kids, dancing wildly on the stage, making unintelligible sounds and blathering.

The child on my right as I faced them, my body stilled with utter shock and horror, flailed wildly in the air with his arms and let manic laughter slide from his gruesomely smiling lips. Bobbling his bald head, the huge wooden vice on his head cruelly crushing into the delicate bone of his skull, he whimpered before throwing his head back again, his hands finding his naked belly to clutch at it as he screeched forth with shreiking laughter. Bare feet stomped merrily on the ground, shaking soft and baggy green pants around skinny legs as the child danced in place between his bouts of cackling.

The centermost boy was more horrible than the last, similarly clad in nothing but baggy pants and leaving his vulnerable little body exposed to the chill of the schoolhouse. But instead of manically laughing, the boy was hoping around with his arms nearly on the ground, hooting wildly like a primate and slapping his hands together from time to time in a perverse little animalistic dance. The light in the small auditorium, for indeed that is what Leon and I were standing in, reflected horribly from the bent and crooked stakes that had been driven into the boy's naken grinning skull.

As my eyes fell upon the third child, I felt what little bile remained in my stomach come up. Bending at my waist I threw up violently, my stomach seeming to leap into my throat and my heart thundering with revulsion.

It wasn't so much that he was as thin as the other boys, nor that he was half nude as they were. It certainly wasn't the fact that his face carried the same grim grimace of a smile as the other children, stretched unnaturally tight and wickedly clenched against any pain that might be flooding his tiny mind.

No, it was the fact that the top half of his skull had been sawn off, leaving his fleshy, living brain exposed to air and jiggling as he threw his head back and waved his hands in the air, shushing some imaginary creature that hovered over his location before returning his blank stare to the world straight ahead of his body.

"What the fuck is wrong with this 'Alice' girl?" Leon softly whispered from beside me, his hand softly resting on my back even as I continued to hurl my insides past my lips.

As my sickness passed, I immediately turned away from the grisly sight before straightening my stance. "We have to go. We need to find that window and find our companions. We need to find that Rabbit and we need to find that gummi! Now come on." Closing my eyes, I took a deep and steadying breath. I needed to calm down. I needed to relax. I needed... the strength _he_ possessed. "So let's get a move on, right?" I softly said, my voice more jubilant than I'd expected it to be.

The swordsman that accompanied me didn't argue with me. Instead, he stepped ahead of me, lightly brushing his fingers over my shoudler as he passed my still body, and gripped that odd weapon of his tightly in his hand. "Let's go then."

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: (concerning Cloud) No, I'm not completely off my rocker with my 'revelations' by Cloud in this chapter (yes, I'm fully aware he never made it into the organization he professed belonging to, much less made that rank. I'm playing with his head. Shut up). Let's simply say that the Cheshire Cat will soon explain all. Kind of. And that Leon's not the only one being corrupted by Wonderland.

If you're flailing about Cloud's reaction to Leon's impromptu advance, I'm going to point to the past chapters of 'Behind Closed Doors' where I already heavily covered the Honey Bee Inn incident. I'm not having Cloud laugh it off (or, more appropirately, forehead-slap it off) as easily as he did in the game. Yep, I think that event would be something anyone (including/especially Cloud) would harbor inside for a long, _long_ time. If you're curious about it, read about it. I think I brought it up in the optional chapter 24.5, too. There you go.

A/N 3: (concerning Leon) Leon's not actually going asstardishly OOC. There's a reason behind his behavior right now. All will be revealed in time. Trust me - I'm trying to make everything as non-AU as possible. (And yes, I know that asstard and its adverb asstardishly aren't real words. I like inventing new words from time to time. Feh.)

A/N 4: (concerning 'American McGee's Alice') If you've played this game, you're probably noting that I've gone out of order. You're supposed to go through the Fortress of Doors to get the ingredients for the potion to make you small, then go to the Vale of Tears. I know. But I'm taking my own special liberties - and seeing as how this is a land derived by a fractured mind, who's to say it can't do what I want? Heh. I love the Fortress of Doors. And I love Behind the Looking Glass, too. But in the interest of keeping things to a reasonable length (especially considering that first off there's a page limit on each chapter to keep them from reaching the ridiculous lengths they attain in my other stories, and also how much more I've got in store for these guys), I had to pick one over the other. So the insane children get touched on here instead of the spooky as all billy hell asylum with its blood splattered walls. Trust me - I'll make it all work out in the end (plus I didn't want to deal with Doormy or the March Hare - they're freaking terrifying but they have nothing to do with the Heartless, just with the Mad Hatter and his corruption. That (and the 'you're next' messages written in blood through the area) can stay untouched for dear Alice). And yes, I've taken artistic liberties with the looks of certain monsters to be found here. The graphics were marvelous, but they weren't _that_ great. You couldn't see squirming maggots in rotting flesh. I just decided to take the gross-out factor a bit higher. :P Oh, and before anyone asks - the scene in the auditorium is _not_ from my demented imagination. That's actually in the game. And every detail is correct. Says something about this game, now, doesn't it?

A/N 4: (concerning the BCD plushie) Yep, decided that the Shadow Heartless plushie will be given away at the end of July (only 8 days left until he's removed from availability! Then he becomes Jeff Gordy's with no contest. He likes it - he just wants me to rip off the aquamarine eyes and put some yellow ones on him). So off we go on a contest! A day on the gummi. Either group – doesn't matter. Favorite entry gets it, provided the sender gives a mailing addy that it can get to. Send to the email addy on my profile to ensure I get it, whether out to sea or not. Pictures are provided off of:

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ plushie. html

As is usual, remove the spaces. Enjoy!

* * *

Review replies:

Angl: First off, I'm only a pervert if you read _that_ in 'Finish Line.' Mwa ha ha! And as for your 'Behind Closed Doors' review, first off, thanks for reviewing! (hugs) Secondly, as per your confusion, Sora just ended up in another Disney movie - 'The Black Hole.' Probably a bit too old for people under 20 (plus a few years - closer to 30) to really remember very well. Otherwise they'd be screaming "Maximilian!" like a few of my coworkers who remember it did when they read the last chapter. And Vincent isn't FF7's Vincent. Nope, not the red-eyed coffin-sleeper. Not him at all. Vincent in the last chapter is, properly, V.I.N.CENT. LF 396 - Vital Information Necessary Centralized, Labor Force. A robot stationed with the crew of the _Palomino_ to seek out intelligent life in outer space. So yep, just a coincidence. And they just landed on the _USS Cygnus_, an American ship lost in space for 20 years after it ignored its recall orders that was also out to discover intelligent life, but deviated to investigate an enormous black hole. Sorry 'bout the confusion. But I guess that can be expected - this is quite an old movie that was more of a cult classic than anything (dude, people get chopped apart, have their brains scrambled with high-powered lasers and die gruesome deaths getting crushed by falling steel beams and sucked into the vacuum of space in this thing - NOT a friendly Disney movie!) so it's not overly well known. (sheepish grin) Hopefully this update came quickly enough for you!

littlekittykat: Mwe he he. Spooky Wonderland's freaking awesome. (merry grin) And Doctor Reinhardt... oh, he's all sort of freaky. He scared me silly when I was a little squirt watching this movie for the first few times. (laughs) He hails from 'The Black Hole,' an old Disney flick that was made in 1979. Now available on DVD and everything! XD

DarkStarPhoenix: Ah, school. Joy of joys. Sorry the last chapter was a bit odd, but combining 'The Black Hole' with its humongous and well-set script and KH is kind of funky, not to mention challenging. Especially considering that I'm trying not to screw the Disney movies over too badly and actually am making an attempt to have them play out as they originally did. XP A pain in the butt, I tell you!

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(takes a deep breath as she slowly closes her laptop) Hint, kiddies. Don't play 'American McGee's Alice' in the middle of the night with no lights on in your house and the volume turned completely up. It's... nngh... (as she sinks into incoherent blathering, the Ansem plushie helpfully pats her head before pointing towards his favorite feature on ff. net, squealing "SUBMIT!") 


	33. Skool

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) Additional A/N's are located below. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 33  
The Heartless – Skool

Cid and I ran as quickly as we could from the Heartless that chased us, barelling almost uncontrollably into the next chamber of the strange fortification we'd entered. There were so many - Gargoyles, Wizards, Darkballs, Neo-Shadows and Search Ghosts made up their numbers. I felt something stir far from my hollow chest, panging with pity - the girl named 'Alice' was quite far-gone if the Heartless were so plentiful in her once merry Wonderland.

The old man I towed along by his spear cursed vividly before coming to an abrupt halt, nearly setting me on my rear as he dug his shoes solidly down against the rough tiled floor I was trying to sprint across. Staggering back a step, nearly dropping the portion of Cloud's sword that I carried, I turned my head to stare at him.

He fell immediately to his knees, covering his ears and gritting his teeth.

I was almost knocked flat once again as yet another one of those rotting floating beasts we'd met when we first entered the fortress arrived and unleashed with an unearthly scream. Cid snarled vividly, ducking his ehad low. I stood before him, unmoved by the power of the audible attacks and praising the fact that I have no actual eardrums, then tossed my butcher knife right into its rotten heart.

As it burst into flames, I looked back, brandishing Cloud's sword in my clawed hands. With that handy little delay, the Heartless were certain to be upon us in seconds.

Cid staggered to his feet and stumbled past me, picking up my knife and shoving it into the band around his waist. "Can't go leavin' this thing behind, kiddo. Cloud's not gonna let you keep a part of his sword when we meet up with 'im again."

I decided to pointedly ignore the 'kiddo' statement and simply responded, "Wasn't intending to. But it's hard to fight with two hands when one blade's so much heavier. I can't heft this damned thing with both hands - it's almost as large as I am, for crying out loud."

"Excuses, excuses," Cid chuckled. "Cloud swings his sword 'round with those twiggy arms of his lickity split with no problems."

"I think that's an unnatural phenomenon," I retorted. "They're here." "Heh! Rotten little Heartless bastards. C'mon and get what's comin' to you!" my partner burst out, dropping the rest of Cloud's sword that he was hauling to the ground to free his body of the burden of its weight even as he sprang towards our enemies.

The portion of Cloud's sword that I held was surprisingly effective against those Heartless that fell upon us, even with the ineptitude I displayed while attempting to wield the damned thing. Its obscene weight actually granted me more power in every swing that I managed to effectively land, slicing with eerie cleanliness through everything it hit. Dashing about as quickly as I could while hindered with its enormity, I audibly snarled and charged my brethren.

Neo-Shadows sprang around me, only to be quickly cleaved into pieces by the weapon in my hands. Cid was making short work of some of the more advanced Emblem Heartless, his spear punching through Gargoyles with nearly every thrust and tossing those pierced corpses towards our surrounding enemies before they even had the chance to dissipate. Fire and lightning sang from the heavens, drawn into reality by the efforts of the hovering Wizards that zipped in and out of visible space around us, keeping us both constantly on the move to dodge their murderous touches.

I handily ducked as Cid spun on his heel, swinging his spear around his circling body. Every enemy near us flew wildly, Wizards being smacked by Darkballs and their efforts at spell casting cleanly interrupted, Search Ghosts dodging flying Neo-Shadows, gargoyles pounding against the walls. I sprang from my location, Cloud's sword in hand, verily gutting as many Heartless as I could reach before they began to recover.

Together, the wily pilot tossing Heartless left and right and me dashing in to finish the job, we made fairly quick work of our opponents. As the final Darkball of the batch that had chased us burst into inky smoke after receiving the point of Cloud's sword through its spherical body, I flopped back on my behind even as Cid leaned on his spear.

"Heh. Only good Heartless is a dead Heartless, I say," his gravely voice chuckled. Moments later, he blinked before he let his grit, grimacing grin lax into a sheepish smile that smoothed his wrinkled, dried face. "Eh, no offence meant."

"None taken," I said, laughter shifting under my statement. "Now, how about we figure out how to get to the second story of that schoolhouse?"

"Sure thing," he gruffly agreed, looking around our current surroundings. "Well, I only see one exit."

I mentally grimaced as I scanned the area. Another room, this one featuring a much smaller hole in the floor than the last, with a rickety staircase leading to a nearly collapsed catwalk that spanned unnaturally over the area we stood in and blocked our view of the swirling dark atmosphere above. That catwalk, suspended by invisible supports, lead to a doorframe in which swirled a maddeningly active whirlpool of color. "Hm. Wonder where the heck that thing leads."

"Only one way to find out," Cid snorted before picking up Cloud's nearly completed giant sword and marching towards the hole in the ground. Lobbing the spiky-haired warrior's forgotten weapon cleanly across the chasm, he looked to me. "Need help gettin' across?"

"Nah, I've got it under control," I affirmed before handing him the remainder of the sword assembly he'd tossed and going two-dimensional. Slithering along the walls, I made it easily across. After returning to being fully three-dimensional, I granted him a merry wave of a hand.

He cursed me heavily before lobbing himself with zero grace across the obstacle. Then granting me nothing but dirty glances he picked up Cloud's sword, snapped the piece I'd grabbed and used against the Heartless back into place to complete that weapon, and dropped my butcher knife on my head before stomping off towards the stairs that lead to that odd hovering catwalk.

Rubbing my head ruefully, I picked up my butcher knife before dashing after him to catch up.

Giving each other a furtive glance, we stepped through the portal.

I couldn't help but cover my eyes. I was frightened - last time I stepped through an unknown doorway, I'd ended up in a rather terrible situation, after all.

At least this time there was no Keyblade Master on the other side of that door to lock me away forever. At least this time there was no antiquated man there to invalidate my efforts and make my trip through that door inconsequential.

Separating my fingers, I stared at our new surroundings even as Cid growled out, "What the fuck?"

We were face to face with another door, one that swung open as we stepped towards it. Then we discovered that we were in an odd chamber, one with a ceiling this time. Its walls, tall and built with gray brick, zigzagged in and out, providing many small recesses in which doorways or hiding places could be located.

"Be on your lookout, Cid."

"You don't have to tell me nothin' like that," the pilot snorted softly, leaning Cloud's sword against the nearby wall and stalking forward with his spear.

I followed at his heels with my knife, nervousness flying along my senses.

That nervousness was well warrented, too. The area was filled with multitudes of cards.

Spades and diamonds fell on us, pouring from those niches in the walls with lances forward and explosive bombs flying. With a roar Cid charged, his spear held tightly in his hands. I fought away the urge to flatten myself for safety and isntead turned, intending to cover his back.

It was then that I noticed that the walls didn't go all the way to the ceiling - they left a small catwalk above us, covered with diamonds that were readying their projectile bombs!

I quickly threw my knife, listening with satisfaction as it thumped with a meaty 'thwack' into a diamond's head. A quick dash to the wall and a leap onto it, I went two-dimensional and slithered up that wall as quickly as I could. I only emerged into the three-dimensional world again when I was beside the collapsed corpse of the card I'd just murdered.

Wrenching my blade free of the grimacing, shocked head that carried my knife between its wide eyes, I ran the length of that catwalk, hunting those who threw their bombs down on my friend. Those cards on the second level of our fighting arena obviously weren't expecting a foe where they were 'safely' standing - I was able to take every one of them by surprise, handily driving my blade into each card's back, painting my hands with their thick red blood.

Soon I was out of enemies on the upper level of the room, leaping to the ground floor and landing with barely a sound. Cid whirled and flashed me a grin from his blood-splattered face, calmly wiping blood from a deep gash in his forearm. "Well, that was rather interestin', wasn't it?"

"Tell me about it," I sighed as I flopped down. "You're not hurt too badly, are you?" I asked, lifting my gaze to meet his.

"Just a scratch," he replied.

"And yet a scratch can be the most deadly of things here in Wonderland," a deep voice interrupted clear out of the blue.

I joined Cid in damned near jumping out of my skin as the Cheshire Cat's grin appeared before us, the rest of his body slowly joining that toothy, fanged smile. His tail lashed back and forth even as he ducked his head a bit, his flattened ears perking up a bit as those sharp canines of his ground against his bottom mandible.

Swallowing audibly, I rose to my feet and stared at the wickedly smirking feline. "What do you mean by that?"

"Metaessence, that which replenishes mental fortitude, is the life force of Wonderland. Not the potions you would use, not the curing magics you possess The injuries you attain are not so physical in nature as you would believe."

"Not so physical in nature, eh?" Cid gruffly snorted, rubbing his stubble-lined chin with thick fingers. "Sure seems to be physical. Bleedin' an' everything."

Gesturing forward with a sharply clawed paw, the Cat's head bobbed as if he was suppressing a bout of laughter. "Wonderland is the realm of imagination. A land of the mind."

"But we're here! Physically! Make some damned sense, Cat!" Cid bid.

I stared, my eyes widening as much as they could. "You mean... that our injuries are to our minds, not our bodies?"

Swinging his piercing gaze to me, the slit-eyed feline sneered. "Body and mind are one in Wonderland. Surely what affects one affects the other. Ask yourself - what is to become of the body when the mind is destroyed? What is to become of the mind when the body is slaughtered?"

"Both become nonexistent," I softly answered. "Both fade into nothing."

"So yer sayin'... I don't fuckin' get it," Cid huffed.

"He's saying that any physical damage we take here is also affecting our minds. Right?"

The Cat chuckled again, his voice grating through his skinny throat. "Once more, the one who lacks his heart is most apt to listen to it. Sanity is held only by the healthy mind - as the mind decays, sanity decays as well. When sanity decays, the mind becomes that which the mind most fears. The hidden aspects of the brain come forth to rule when that which would hold it repressed fades into darkness. Do well to keep yourself free from the touch of madness here in Wonderland - let it garner too great a grasp on your psyche, and you may not escape our lands alive."

I gulped as the Cat slowly faded away, leaving naught but his grin.

"But... it physically hurts. It's not a mental degradation, right? Just physical injury? So we're not bein' affected like you think..." Cid muttered.

"Only the insane equate pain with success," the Cat's gravely voice hissed before his grin vanished completely.

I sighed quietly, returning my gaze to Cid and capturing his attention. "Yeah, it's a physical injury But this land is the creation of a girl's imagination. It's the realm of the mind. The bodies that are 'us' running around here, while real to us, are actually physical representations of our mental states."

"Wait, you're sayin' we're still on the gummi? This is a dream?"

I held my head in a clawed hand. "No. I'm saying that when your blood's drawn here, it's not killing you physically. It's killing you mentally. You can probably bleed your body completely dry and not bother eating or sleeping or going piss for weeks on end without any physical damage done to you."

"Now that you mention it, I ain't been hungry since we set down..."

"That's not the point, Cid!" I snapped. "Don't you get it? The more you get hurt, the more your mind dies! The more your sanity leaves! So the more injury you take, the more insane you go! So here it's not a matter of physically dying - it's a matter of having your mind go so bat-shit nuts that you die mentally! You become a blathering mess destined to remain stuck here in Wonderland, and your mind becomes incapable of supporting your body, so it dies too! You become a rotting corpse stuck here forever!"

He stared at me, his eyes wide with horror before he stared at the gash on his arm. "So you're sayin'..."

"The more injury you take, the more you lose yourself. And you become what your mind most fears."

Cid growled at that. "Then we'd better find this Metaessence stuff that Cat blathered about. If that shit can repair the mind, it's pro'lly like our potions for this place."

"Yeah," I readily agreed. "But first, we've got to catch up with Cloud and Leon."

"Right," he snorted. Returning to where he'd left Cloud's sword, he hefted the massive blade over his shoulder once more and we set out through the only unbarred door we could find.

After passing through four identical portals, we stared. Our scenery had suddenly changed, leaving us in a room with only three sides, the floor underneath us stretching forward to break away before an impossibly wide chasm between us and another ledge in the distance. A single lever erupted from the floor at its edge, not apparently connected to anything. I shambled over to it and decided to give it a try. When given a yank, no effect was noticed. Multitudes of colors swam in a slow tornado around us, accompanied by, oddly enough, a spinning, huge door. I shivered as it swung upon and passed over and around us before shutting and spinning off into wherever the vortex of dark colors lead to.

"What the fuck?" Cid proclaimed, voicing both of our mindsets.

"I have no clue." Looking about more carefully, I finally noticed a set of stairs spiraling down. "I'll check below."

When I finally arrived at the bottom floor, I stared as I came face to face with a set of three identical levers that were set before the giant chasm that separated us from the distant ledge, behind which was a strange conglomeration of machinery that whirred and puffed steam without any apparent purpose. The Cheshire Cat slowly oozed into being, his grin firm and sneering. "The proper order of things often eludes me. You as well?" he chuckled before fading away again.

Sighing, I stared at the levers. Then I made up my mind.

Pulling the one furthest on my right, I stared around me for any change in my surroundings. Nothing happened - the odd machines behind me still spun without any visible effect. The other levers still beckoned at me to pull them.

I shrugged and moved to the one most on my left, yanking it firmly. Still nothing.

The most curious thing happened when I yanked the centermost one, though! Without any provocation, the levers vanished! From upstairs I heard Cid's voice curse violently - apparently the lever up there vanished as well.

"Hey, get your shadowy butt up here, fella! Some shit's goin' on!"

Taking my cue, I hurred up the stairs. When I arrived at Cid's side, I stared with huge eyes. A walkway had lifted itself out of the chasm that seemed empty and infinite, stretching almost completely over to the other ledge, where four doors stood open and inviting!

"What the hell did you do down there?" Cid questioned even as he set bravely across that apparently magically supported walkway.

I cautiously plucked my way along at his side. "Just played with some levers."

As he calmly dispatched of the single spade that was runnign amuck on the ledge we were striking for with a casual toss of his spear, we made the short jump to our new destination. After he'd retrieved his weapon, we made our way through those open doors to arrive at another green swirling portal.

"No wonder that little gnome guy called this place the Fortress of Doors," I groaned in dismay.

"Quit yer whinin' and get thorugh," Cid snorted before giving my behind a swift kick with his boot, propelling me right through the whirling mass of colors.

I yelped as I collided with something on the other side Something bony... and stinky... and covered in rotting, oozing flesh...

Jabbing forward blindly with my knife, a scream on my nonexistent lips, I sliced whatever it was I'd flown into to ribbons.

"Good work!" Cid jibed as he appeared behind me.

I sat up from my impromptu seat int he midst of the remains of one of those banshee-screaming skeletal monsters. "That was cruel, Cid. Very cruel."

"Ah, shut up. Couldn't have you stallin' forever. Now, for our next... what the fuck!"

I turned as his garbled voice cursed vividly, wondering why his face had gone purple and his language had gone sour.

Three doors. Three ledges. And the doors were hopping errantly between them.

How the hell were we supposed to choose?

As they settled down, I looked at Cid and shrugged my small shoulders casually. "Might as well choose one."

"I go for the one right in front of us."

"Sounds good," I muttered. Straightening my stance as well as a Shadow Heartless could, I made my way to the door and wrenched it open. I groaned as I was faced with a red whirl of color that refused me entry. The door slammed shut and, even as I staggered backward, the three doors began to change position again.

"Oh, I get it," Cid hummed as he scratched his chin. "We gotta choose the one with the green color in it."

"Whichever one that is," I groaned.

It took us a full half hour to finally get the right door. With a cheer we both marched straight through it.

And we both sighed as we appeared in yet another room. The floor before us, tiled with a grisly green and white checkerboard scheme, separated into different pieces that began to errantly move up and down. Following the impromptu path they momentarily created, I sighed. "There's our next portal," I observed, pointing to a tiny ledge far above us with a clawed fingertip.

"And there's our death if we fuck up," Cid kindly observed, pointing down between the floating platforms to the infinitely deep abyss underneath us.

"Fucking fabulous," I bit.

"Hey, kids shouldn't be fucking cursing," Cid reprimanded, ignoring my squawk of "Who said I'm a kid?" even as he hopped onto the nearest, lowest platform and reached down, snagging me by my antennae and dragging me with him despite my cries of pain and flailing.

I soon gave up my fight, resigning myself to be hauled by the gruff old blond by the antennae attached to the top of my skull as he almost clumsily leapt from platform to platform, expertly getting us to the next door. My grip on my butcher knife remained tight as he flung me through the portal, though, and my eyes were promising to throw it into his back the moment he turned it towards me, I can guarantee. He ignored my glares and just stomped along after me, Cloud's sword still in tow along with his own spear.

"I hate this place,' I observed as we appeared in a small, cramped room with only one exit.

"Fucking tell me about it," Cid agreed. "Hey, lookit out there!"

I stepped to his side, turning to view what he was seeing. I almost jumped up and down in glee.

The schoolhouse!

Our journey had finally put us atop the wall we'd entered the fortress through, on that catwalk that lead so enticingly close to teh slowly rocking building's second story window!

All that stood in our way was a pair of bomb hurling diamond cards.

Slipping forward, a quick nod to Cid informing him that he should stay back to keep himself from injury. I moved almost completely unnoticed in the dark shadows that proliferated the catwalk's innermost walls. With stealth that would have made the bouncing short-haired ninja girl back at the fortification I'd arrived at when I'd first emerged from Kingdom Hearts' dark interior proud, I managed to slide my dagger into the first card's back, earning a soft gurgle from his lips. The other card was similarly put down, a startled cry leaking from him and alerting two of those banshee creatures.

Cid was ready for them - he got the jump on them, quite literally as a matter of fact, springing from the wall and driving his spear through both with a single mighty thrust before landing neatly beside me.

"Whoa! Nice, Gramps!" I praised.

"Shut up, fuck-head. I ain't no fuckin' Gramps, and you damned know that," he snarled even as he spun his spear, flinging the two decayed corpses from its length.

We both stared at the slowly rocking schoolhouse, at the open window that called to us.

"Entering skool requires a real leap of logic," the Cheshire Cat's voice hissed from beside us.

I swear, if I had a bladder, I would have pissed myself.

I didn't get the opportunity to voice my displeasure with the Cat, though, as Cid grabbed me by the antennae once more and hurled me forcibly through the window we longed to enter. I handily rolled out of the way as he landed a moment later, his heavy shoes thudding solidly onto the mat where I'd been dashed. Dragging myself off of the floor, glancing down at the strangely placed welcome mat that read 'Skool,' I raised my gaze.

Both Cid and I looked around with wide eyes.

As a half-naked child with his hairless head bound in leather straps meandered past, we gulped.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: Nngh. This particular area of 'American McGee's Alice' is flooded with door puzzles and huge areas to get really lost in. You can spend upwards of an hour here easily. Very, very easily. This chapter is one I'm disappointed in - it's really rushed, but I wanted to get Cid and the Shadow into Skool some time this century and still touch on some of the rooms you pass through to get there. I'll just be taking extreme artistic liberties with the contents of the library and eliminating all of the other running around you do after finding the all-important book that's located there. They'll have a bit of a shortcut to an exit from the Fortress of Doors and get right to the Vale of Tears with the next chapter. Promise. And no, I won't be dealing too much with the Mock Turtle. I'll be focusing more on getting to the Caterpillar. Oh, and hope the Cheshire Cat's cleared up what exactly's going wrong with our cuddly-wuddly-wittle-Leon-kitty these days. Heh heh. And Cloudy-wowdy. And soon enough, Ciddy-poo. (runs away from all three FF characters as they chase her with brandished weapons for those idiotic nicknames)

Yep, decided that the Shadow Heartless plushie will be given away at the end of July (only 3 days left!). So off we go on a contest! A day on the gummi. Either group – doesn't matter. Favorite entry gets it, provided the sender gives a mailing addy that it can get to. Send to the email addy on my profile to ensure I get it, whether out to sea or not. Pictures are provided off of:

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ plushie. html

As is usual, remove the spaces. Enjoy!

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Review replies:

littlekittykat: Oh, I intend to. Trust me on that one. (wicked little cackle) Thank you so much for the review! (gratified hug)

Angl: Ah, thank you much! Disturbing is precisely what I was going for. I'm almost going to be sad to leave Wonderland behind - there's something about the action-packed macabre place that I've fallen deeply in love with. (manic grin) And I'm NOT a pervert! (winces as everyone around her in her work center laughs at that obviously false proclamation) Damn it. That wasn't very convincing, was it? XD Anyway, trying my best with the updates, but this _is_ a severe pain in the ass. You're cruel, BTW - not going to let me watch? (simpers pathetically) But... but! Wait. It's not being denied LexZex. I'm good. (sniggers, skips away to glomp her KH:CoM ship) Not to say I don't love CL, but... LexZex is so freaking kawt! (gush, dies, drools happily even as her still body is nudged by the silver-haired nobody again, who mutters 'damn it, she died before she got anotehr lemon out for us,' before being dragged off to a warm dark place by his body-building 'friend')

DarkStarPhoenix: Yay! You got my letter! (grins) And yes, I call that crappy. My buddy's much better than me with a pencil. (le sulk) But I do try. I try hard. And I hate the results a day later when I do. (laughs) Neh, if you like my doodles, you want the originals from the 100 reviews graphic I put up? I'm getting suck of looking at them, so they're destined for the trash when I get back into homeport. :P You can consider yourself a potential recipient for my 'bored on watch' doodles now that I have a mail addy. Mwa ha ha. I'm evil. (dances around) Oh! Questions! Thanks for the praise of the chapter, first off! First question - Leon trying again. Well, given how wacky his mind is right now...w e'll just let him answer that one for himself in the next few chapters. Mwe he he. Second, blood - a good deal of that belongs to Leon. Third, wing - it's still flapping around! He hasn't bothered banishing it again quite yet. XD Good catch on the details! BTW, you like your keychain?

scarlettHuntress: Well... eh... (happy little grin, sheepish rub at the back of her head) At least they got around to kissing, yes? And... eh... well, let's just say there's more to come. Much more to come. (grabs the sulking Lion of Balamb as he tries his damnedest to slink away from her demented little plans) Let's say that things will get better (and hawter) between them, but... it takes time! Especially with two basket cases like them. :P At least I got you a squee:)

Li the Twilight Knight: Heh heh. More LeonxCloud-ness will be on the way... it's just not exactly... eh... (ducks away before she starts spewing plot like pea soup) Anyway! Glad you like Wonderland. I like creepy over cutsey. But I'm sick. XD And I'm glad you had fun reading the bonus chapter. (lmao) Oh, the fun of reading smut in a public place! You exhibitionist, you. At least you can read it - onboard ye auld ship there's no angelfire access allowed, so I can't even read/edit/post my own stuff on my own freaking web page. (sniffle) Damn it all. And there're SO many typos in those two optional chapters that need repair.

Raz: (finishes crying in utter glee) Finally! Another person who recalls this movie! And no crying about your age. That just puts oyou into the same category as myself - and if you're sobbing, I have to as well. Eh heh heh. Thank you so much for the review, first off! Glad you've enjoyed what I've written so far! I'm glad you didn't find blitzing through this thing at its (now 33) chapter weight too intimidating, and I'm glad you found my story hasn't wavered any (that's actually quite a challenge, and I thank you for the compliment!). 'Alice' is ending up being my favorite thing ever now - I'm almost fearing leaving it behind, but realize I have to oe day. They still have a few more places to go, after all. (grumps) Sora's wake-up call will be _fun_. Heh heh. And I'm _soooo_ happy that I got complimented on my characterization! That's one thing I always strive for. So happy to hear that you're willing to stick with it - even I have no idea how much longer this'll run for... (shiver)

* * *

Well, things are getting serious now, neh? Please, do feed the craving stomach. Hungry authoress would like review cookies. (merry nod, even as the plushie facefaults and then just lamely flails at the 'submit review' feature) yes, I know that was a sad attempt to get reviews, you damned plushie. Shush. ("SUBMIT!") Whatever. 


	34. Vexation

Sorry this update's a bit late, but I got royally distracted by my determination to pound Omega Weapon (FF8's version) into dust. Took me three days, but I finally did it.

Sheah. Strategy? DON'T. DO. THIS. FIGHT. You only get a single Three Stars for winning. And a gay little banner in your Info section that pats you on the back and says, "Hey! You don't suck!" Or something close to that effect. No additional FMVs, no really decent items, no alteration in the game. It's _optional_. It's _unnecessary._ It's damned _hard._ Ultimecia's a fucking cakewalk compared to that bitch. So I reiterate: DON'T. DO. THIS. FIGHT.

Unless you're crazy. (spoiler strategy for winning following here – much easier and more reasonable than the damned strategy guide hints) Then have at least 1 Hero, a bunch of Auras, Triple junctioned to your speed and as many speed bonuses junctioned to your abilities as possible, Death to your defense (or else level 5 death will smush you into paste within the first 15 seconds of battle), Meltdown to your strength (Ultima works nicely too, but I'd throw that onto HP if you're going to junction it – you WANT to have 9999 hp to survive one of Omega Weapon's attacks. Holy junctions up well to HP too). Have Alexander and Leviathan on your swiftest character (mine was Rinoa) so that character has Revive and Restore. Set up a second character with massive magic and Siren to boost the effects – have at least 20 Auras, a few Hastes, 1 Meltdown you're willing to waste and as many Ultimas as you feel like pounding the Weapon with. Also have that character set up with the Item ability so he/she can throw your Hero (for me, this character was Zell). Third, have Squall. Have Lionheart gunblade. No freaking two ways about it. Have him and his ultimate weapon. You need Lionheart as a limit break. First, cast Meltdown on the Weapon to eradicate his Vitality. Then Haste the shit out of Squall, Aura him so he limit breaks at any HP, press the O button if he doesn't come up with a limit break until he does (do this _fast_ – you need to hit this fucker as often and as quickly as you can). If you have high compatibility (talking 1000 here), bring on Doomtrain so he gets Omega Slowed to – you don't have to do this, though. Pound the crap out of Omega Weapon until he performs his Flare attack, which'll knock everyone down to 1 hp (provided they have 9999 when it hits! This is why your healer (Rinoa in my game) should be Restoring like a mad monkey). Hero your healer, 'cause next attack's the freaking Terra Break that slaughtered my party every damned time I fought the Weapon until I figured that trick out. Bring Squall back ASAP. Aura and Haste him again. Go wild with limit breaks. Bring back your third character, too, and start laying into the Weapon with Ultima (anything elemental including Holy and Flare will actually heal the damned thing – found that out the hard way). It'll fall, given enough time and uberfast fingers.

Just in case one of you decides to pick up FF8 and torture yourself by fighting this damned thing.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 34  
The Keyblade master – Vexation

The elevator had carried my friends away, accompanied by members of that smaller ship's crew and that monstrous Maximilian robot.

To say I wasn't concerned would be to lie through my teeth.

Rather than worrying myself sick about their wellbeing while being escorted by that blade-wielding beast, I instead reassured myself that if nothing else Donald could blow it away with his Thunder magic and that Goofy could likely fend off those deadly whirring serrated fanned blades with his Save The King shield. Letting my mind slowly digest that thought, forcibly convincing myself that it was indeed true, I sighed and returned my focus to my current predicament.

I'd promised my friends that I would keep the wily Doctor Reinhardt occupied. I'd also determined that the man had more going on onboard his vessel, the _USS Cygnus_, than he let on. I wanted to discover what exactly was going on before my innate curiosity ate me alive.

With a hearty sigh, I turned my attention to the three who remained with me in the huge control room of the _Cygnus_ who'd boarded from that tiny vessel that had landed.

The first, a woman in a pink flight suit, wore upon her face a slim smile tarnished by concern and worry. She was slim yet well-formed, her body that of a grown woman, fully developed in ways that I could only imagine (and hope to see) Kairi shaping into when she was done with her adolescence. Short, curly dirty blonde hair framed a slender face, tendrils pooling around her round ears and framing wide hazel eyes.

The second, a tall and stately looking gentleman in a gray flight suit with a sweater pulled lightly over its top, was looking about the control room with academic wonder written upon his lightly wrinkled face. His neatly cropped hair swept over a slightly receding hairline at the temples, a dusting of gray upon those once dark strands. Hands in his pockets, he swiveled his attention slowly about the area.

The third, a rather stout and tall man in dark slacks and a sweatshirt, was busily taking the condition of the ship in critically with dark, studious eyes. His thin lips were flat, bordering upon a frown he was obviously fighting from his expression, even as his eyes narrowed and further enhanced the wrinkles that lined the corners of his sockets. Sniffing disdainfully, he ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

Clearing my throat, I slowly approached them. Their attention slowly was drawn from the grandeur of the room in which they stood and focused on me. Smiling faintly, I extended one gloved hand to the woman whose name I'd heard was 'Kate.'

Well, rather than say 'Hiya' based on what I'd caught in the crossfire of conversation, I decided to open relations a bit more formally while the Doctor was temporarily distracted with managing his robot crew.

"How do you do? My name's Sora," I opened, my smile deepening into a warm and genuine expression of friendliness. "From Destiny Islands. Got here on my gummi ship, the _Excalibur_. And you?"

The woman was the first to part from her companions' sides, her expression instantly warming and relaxing, the worry dropping momentarily from her eyes. Clasping my hand in a frail embrace and a tender shake, she nodded. "Kate McCrae. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sora."

"And I'm Harry Booth," the stout man introduced. "Nice to meet you."

"Alex Durant," the thin graying man said with a firm nod. "So, that's a 'gummi ship,' you say? We noted the multi-colored vessel on the other landing pad when we were searching for a landing site for the _Palomino_."

"Yeah, that's my gummi. Kind of ran into a meteor shower and clipped our wing," I sighed, hanging my head in defeat. "Otherwise we would've shot right past this area of space. But with the asteroid field so thick, we had to jump out of gummi space and look for a place to land so we could recharge and see about finding a replacement gummi."

"I fear you'll find no replacements for your ship's missing parts here," Doctor Reinhardt's voice suddenly interjected. "This 'gummi' material you have constructed your ship of is such that I have never before seen."

"Never?" I whimpered in quiet dismay.

"Even we've never seen it," Alex said as he crossed his arms and studied me. "The mission of the _Palomino_ saw us deep into the recesses of space, and I can not once attest to encountering such odd material."

"Oh," I grumped.

"I'm certain you'll find something you can jury-rig, though," Harry interjected with a jovial smile on his lips. "After all, a little bit of creative engineering can get you a long way."

"That 'creative engineering' is what created ships like the _Cygnus_, after all," Kate said with a smile. "You'll find something to suit your needs."

I rubbed the back of my head, flashing a merry smile to the _Palomino's_ crew as they quietly reassured me. "Gee, thanks," I sincerely intoned. "You know, though, it's one heck of a stroke of luck that we came across the _Cygnus_ out here. If it weren't by this big black hole, we would've been sucked in for sure!"

"Similarly with us," Kate softly said as she lightly patted my shoulder. "We were returning to Earth after our mission. The course correction came a bit too late. We drifted far too close to the black hole – by the time we'd imputed our new coordinates, we were already caught in its gravity field and beginning to drift towards the event horizon."

"Yeah, talk about hairy," Harry interjected with a snort. "The _Palomino_ almost shook itself apart trying to burst free and change directions!"

"In fact, with the damages to our oxygen lines and our secondary windings, we may not be able to escape unless we can manage to find repair parts," Alex quietly muttered.

"Sounds almost as bleak as our situation," I groused. "Sometimes I really hate the onboard computers on gummi ships. Yeah, they lay out the quickest courses for you, but they fail to take into account space anomalies that'll kill you if you have to ditch hyperspace." My shoulders slumped slightly in defeat. "So much for a quick return to Hollow Bastion to talk with Leon again."

"Hollow Bastion?" Kate questioned, arching a brow. "Where is that? Is it another world as you claim your 'Destiny Islands' is?"

As Harry began to wander around and study the ship, I kept my attention on the conversation that Kate and I were having. My shoulders moved in a slight shrug. "It's more like part of a much bigger world. Something…." I paused for a moment. After all, Donald always harped on how we weren't supposed to upset the world borders by spreading word about the Heartless. Heck, no one else was supposed to know other worlds existed – however, the _Palomino's_ crew was devoted to finding other worlds that they suspected existed, so I suspected that in that particular case the rules could be bent just a touch. However, I was reluctant to bring up the Heartless. Considering my options, I just shrugged and decided to stick with 'vague and childlike.' They'd expect that of a 14, nearly 15 year-old who was traveling with a bipedal dog and an attitude-ridden talking duck, right? "Something really rotten happened to that world a long time ago. Only a sliver of it's left."

"Oh, I see," Kate murmured. "So you were trying to get back there to see a friend?"

"Something like that. He's probably expecting us back by now." I shuddered without control – whenever I failed to meet appointments with Leon, there was always a 'training session' involved. The man was brutal when he was miffed. Always made me doubt the validity of my wins in the Coliseum against him, especially when he'd mutter that next time he should put Revolver back in the gunblade case where it belongs and give Lionheart some time in his hands.

That glowing blue gunblade scared the bejeezus out of me.

It scared me as much as the new sword Cloud got when I got to see it without its bandages on it and in pieces while he was cleaning it.

"You know," I heard Harry begin from elsewhere in the control room, "this is most odd."

My attention was drawn to the portly man just as Kate's was. As one we began to walk towards the two men from the _Palomino_ as they approached the wily looking Doctor Reinhardt.

Harry scratched his head, his dark eyes making one final sweep around the control room. "Doctor," he began, addressing Mr. Reinhardt, "this ship doesn't appear to be crippled."

"Of course, not," the venerable Doctor huffed as if such a thought that the _Cygnus_ should still be damaged was an insult to his brilliance and ingenuity. "We repaired the damage and became operable again."

"But didn't he say he couldn't contact us because the auxiliary systems on his ship were damaged by a meteorite shower?" I softly mouthed to Kate. She simply gave me a calm, concerned look that reflected my confusion before returning her attention and thusly my own attention to the conversation between the man in his sweatshirt and the lab-coat wearing Doctor.

"But you never obeyed the order to return to Earth," Harry continued, completely unmindful of our side conversation.

Doctor Reinhardt's lips curled with a satisfied smile that carried an astute aura of arrogance. "That's right. I refused this order. There were larger considerations. Other worlds yet to be explored. Life dreams unrealized. Our little friend Sora here proves there are other inhabitable worlds. Our missions, that of the _Cygnus_ and the _Palomino_, weren't in vain – they were called to their termination before they could discover success."

"So you stole the _Cygnus_?" I quickly proclaimed, my voice conveying my concern.

Harry reflected my opinion of the Doctor's actions, huffing loudly. "The authorities would still consider that an act of piracy, Doctor."

Hans Reinhardt just arched a thick eyebrow and wrinkled his nose in clear disdain to our abjections to his theft of the vessel upon which we now stood. "What would you say if the authorities would have called back Columbus just before he discovered the new world? You would even exist. I'm about to prove to you that the end justifies the means."

I shivered slightly. I didn't much like the sound of that.

It was far too reminiscent of Ansem and what he'd professed in his rambling reports. That the atrocities he'd committed with his research was justified by his immense knowledge of the workings of the Heartless and his quest to assimilate the power of Kingdom Hearts, no matter how many lives he brought to an early end, no matter how many Emblem Heartless he created that reigned with terror across the worlds.

In that moment, I found myself regretting that we'd ever approached the _Cygnus_. A pirated ship by a black hole, controlled by a man who in that very instant was becoming in my mind just as diabolical and wicked as the man with his Heartless guardian, was no place to kick up a guy's boots and relax.

As the Doctor waved us to follow him and began to stalk across the vast control room, I found myself prodded to move by a hand gently laid upon my shoulder. Glancing up at Kate, I flashed her a warm smile before falling into step with her and accompanying the small company on their short journey.

Assimilating myself easily enough with the _Palomino's _crew, I slid after the ambling Doctor, staring with rapt attention at equipment that was hopelessly beyond my ability to comprehend. We were lead to a hearty ring of rails surrounding an apparent hole in the floor which housed a huge trio of pulsing blue columns.

"What the heck is that?" I mumbled, scratching my chin even as my lips screwed with curiosity and lack of understanding.

Alex's eyes were huge as he leaned over my shoulder, easily able to garner a good peek at the enormous abyss' contents. "My God," he softly whispered, "that's the largest energy core I've ever seen."

Harry whistled in appreciation, nodding his approval as he crossed his arms over his stout chest. "Damned impressive! That's Earth's United States' tax dollars hard at work, I tell you."

Doctor Reinhardt simply chuckled, his lips curling. "There is enough instant energy down there to supply all of Earth."

Kate nodded slowly, her hazel eyes focused intently on the sparking blue-lit columns. "The first step to colonizing the galaxy."

Alex breathed, "You'll be remembered as one of the greatest space scientists of all time."

"I have never doubted that," Doctor Reinhardt instantly answered. "It's about time that people learn about their failures and my successes."

I shook my head, huffing and crossing my arms. Glancing up at Kate I gave her an easy wink. "Kind of full of himself, isn't he?"

She cast me a light-hearted smile before clasping my shoulder and giving it a tender squeeze. "With accomplishments like that energy core and the antigravity field he uses to hold this position so close to the black hole, he has every right to be."

"Doesn't mean he has to flaunt it so much," I retorted with a slight frown, stuffing my hands into my coveralls' pockets. "I've done a bunch of great stuff too, and I don't expect people to go throwing themselves all over me like he does."

"Oh really? A man of great accomplishments, are we?" Harry said with a grin lifting his cheeks.

I clammed up, contenting myself with staring at the floor as we meandered after the shuffling Doctor while he made his way along a door-lined walkway that skirted the backside of the massive control room.

Alex, steps ahead of us, was still staring at the Doctor with awe lighting his eyes. "You should come back with us and enjoy the glory of that success," he professed to Hans.

"Yeah! After all, if you want people to recognize your greatness, you'd best go tell them about it, right?" I brightly interjected.

Reinhardt scoffed at our words. "I don't want to go back and I don't enjoy successes anymore. There's too much at stake to pull back."

"Too much at stake?" I quietly mouthed. "Like what?"

Smirking at me, Doctor Reinhardt nodded. "I'm on the brink of a great achievement. All this is just the beginning."

"The beginning?" Alex questioned, scratching his chin as I had been a few moments earlier. "Of what?"

"You will know in due time," Doctor Reinhardt said, his smirk deepening into something I almost saw menace in.

Kate tightened her hold on my shoulder, her worry over the Doctor's professions conveyed through that touch and that touch alone. "Doctor Reinhardt," she began in a desperate attempt to change the direction of our disconcerting conversation, "could we have a demonstration of this incredible new power source?"

"Yeah! It ought to be pretty cool if it can power an entire planet," I joined in, welcoming her attempt to drive us away from the generally creepy vibes that were rolling off of the Doctor when he cackled about his accomplishments and his mysterious personal agendas.

I walked along with Kate as she trailed the Doctor, making no complaints as she maintained her light touch on my shoulder. A few moments later Alex approached us from behind.

"Oh, Alex! What were you doing, staying back there? I thought that you of all people would be most interested in this," Kate admonished.

His lightly wrinkled brow furrowed, the thin man frowned. "Harry's gone missing. He must have wandered off down another corridor while we weren't looking."

"Why would he do such a thing?" Kate whispered.

"Maybe he's looking for clues as to what the Doctor's really up to?" I attempted to helpfully utter. "I mean, Mr. Reinhardt has a lot more going on here than he's letting on."

"We know that, Sora," soft lips whispered, Kate turning her lightly painted mouth in a slight expression of disdain. "However, we've got to carefully investigate this."

I shook my head. "Truthfully, I don't really care about all of this stuff – I just want me and my friends to be able to get away from here safely. Something about this place and that guy give me the willies."

"Now Sora," Alex scolded, "give the Doctor a chance. He's simply a touch eccentric. When genius is trapped in such reprehensible isolation, odd characteristics such as he is displaying are certain to rise."

I crossed my arms, silently scowling as I followed along, barely overhearing Doctor Reinhardt profess that if we followed him he would show us everything.

"I call it 'cygnium,' after my ship," he proclaimed as he showed us a sampling of the material he'd constructed his vast energy core out of.

"Whoa, cool!" I breathed, my arms falling out of their spiteful crossed position to dangle at my sides even as my jaw fell slack. "I wonder if that would link up with our gummi cells to power the ship!"

"Thinking of using my cygnium with your ship, Sora?" Hans Reinhardt questioned, one thick brow arching.

I frowned slightly, my arms crossing once again. "Well, if you'd let us," I began carefully. "After all, even if we get a new wing in place and allow our gummi cells to recharge completely, there's no guarantee that we'll have enough power or enough maneuverability to make it out of the black hole's pull. I don't have much ambition for meeting the inside of that thing head on," I clarified.

The wily Doctor's brow creased as he grinned. "Ah, I see. Perhaps I can have one of my robots provide you with a sample."

I stared blankly as he patted one of his black-robed robots lightly on the shoulder and instructed it to get a cygnium core for my vessel. "After all, I wouldn't want to leave you abandoned in space, would I?" he said with a leer in my direction.

Supressing my shudder, I cast him a warm, slightly strained smile. "Eh, thanks for all your help, Doctor."

After all, maybe what I'd thought at first and what Alex apparently also suspected was true. The Doctor had spent twenty years alone in an empty vessel surrounded with nothing but his own robots. Anyone would be liable to go a bit bonkers after that.

As our little tour wrapped up, Alex walked to the forward-most window of the control room and stared at the whirling pit of destruction that hovered so terribly close to our position. "Fascinating," he sighed quietly.

"From a distance," Kate mumbled.

"Tell me about it," I agreed as I slid to her side.

What? Call it overprotective tendencies. She's a pretty lady. She might need help – and if she does, it's me to the rescue.

"Are you interested in black holes?" Doctor Reinhardt questioned as he meandered towards us.

"How can one not be overwhelmed by the deadliest force in the universe?" Alex reproachfully said, his brows arching.

"That long, dark tunnel to nowhere," Kate said, resting her hand once again on my shoulder.

The Doctor snickered softly. "Or somewhere. These are exactly the answers yet to be explored."

Glancing up at Kate, I gulped softly. "Are you thinking he's thinking what I'm thinking he's thinking?"

She simply looked down at me, giving my shoulder a light squeeze and nodding her head discretely towards Alex and Doctor Reinhardt.

She wanted to quietly listen in. Understanding her wish, I fell silent.

"You've defied the power of a black hole with your anti-gravity calculations, a stunning achievement sir," Alex proclaimed.

Doctor Reinhardt looked almost humbled for a moment. "You think so?"

"Yes," the _Palomino's_ man said. "I do."

"Thank you," the wily bearded Doctor mumbled before he began to shuffle away. Pausing his meandering, he lifted a finger as if testing the stagnant air of the control room. "I think, Doctor Durant… that you are a man who longs for a sense of his own greatness, but has not yet found his true direction, right?"

Alex bowed his head slightly as if pondering the meaning of the Doctor's statement before setting his eyes firmly on the lab-coat wearing man's frame. "Perhaps I could find it here, if you're in no hurry for us to leave?"

"Is he crazy?" I instantly burst.

"Alex!" Kate voiced from beside me.

Ignoring us both, Hans Reinhardt simply chuckled. "Shall we discuss that over dinner?"

My stomach plopped solidly down into my intestines.

I suddenly had no appetite for dinner.

_-tbc-_

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Oh, for those of you who want to see my rather paltry skills with a pencil, you can see it at: 

wends. deviantart. com

Remove the spaces, of course.

And don't be appalled. I already know I suck. However, I just felt motivated to get an account and display my suckage for the world. Heh. BTW, if you want anything doodled, just ask. I'm almost willing to begin drawing again. Been a few years. Like, for example, if you don't know what Lionheart (the gunblade) actually looks like or you're curious about character appearances in alternate worlds. Whatever – I'm here to serve. (big friendly and fake customer service smile) And anything that's doodled by yours truly will be posted on deviantart. You can have the originals if you gimme a mailing addy. Hell, m'thinks that if she professes that she wants 'em, DSP can have the originals of the three that're already on DA. If not, then Ava-chan gets 'em. I know how much you love Squally-boy. (nudges her IRL reviewer who keeps prodding her for more smut chapters)

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Review replies: 

Angl: Ahhh… (basks in the glow of a review) Zank you, first off. And the original Alice in Wonderland screwy? Ha! Do give American McGee's version a try. It'll entertain you. Neh heh heh. And I'm _not_… oh, alright. I give up. I'm as perverted as they come. (giggle) Well, not as they _come,_ but… but… oh, never mind. Bad train of thought. You dare think of locking Lexaeus and Zexion up in separate rooms (though that thought's inspiring a story idea in my wee brain), I bring out my busted-ass Triumph Spitfire and run you down with it! Or make really, really bad SoKai fanart and send it to you! Nrgh! Daring to stir my wrath… (shudders violently) Here's yer damned update, ya lousy fucktard! (flips the bird and giggles, ending her 'Cid-channeling' session) ((no insult meant, of course. Gotta read it with a grin, a grain of salt and a wet noodle. Why the wet noodle? Em… don't ask me. But it sure sounded good at the time I typed it!))

scarlettHuntress: (munches merrily on cookie) Mmm. Food! (slurp) Ah. Anyway, yep! Seriously talking about a game. Yes, 'American McGee's Alice' is certainly rated M for graphic violence, disturbing content, blah blah blah. Fiddlesticks, I say! Anyone should be allowed to enjoy the splendor of screaming cards that go flying in meaty bloody chunks when hit with the Jabberwock's eyestaff. (manic cackle) Eh… heh heh. Anyway, glad you liked the explanation, and certainly hope you liked this chapter! I know it was Sora, but… but… he's important too! (blubbers uselessly)

Dark Mog: Thank you so much for the review! Hope you enjoyed the catching up, first off. Wonderland's been terribly fun. Not to say that the Disney stuff hasn't – it's just a different sort of enjoyment. Hope you enjoyed this chapter of BCD! And now I sit and ponder what Sora's next escapade will be. Got a few good choices lined up – right now I'm flopping violently between 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' (made by Touchstone when it was a Disney subsidiary (before it was a Buena Vista subsidiary… which is now a subsidiary of Disney, so we've come full circle), so it counts as a Disney movie in my head) and 'Oliver and Company.' So hard to choose! Oh, and thanks for the review on 'Smile.' I've finally gotten those edits done. (bows head in shame) Damned typos. Almost as aggravating as KH's plot. Yeah, it's great to have open holes for fan speculation. But holes big enough to drive an aircraft carrier through with room to spare make my skull hurt almost as much as Marluxia's oh so fashionable pink scythe (because silver with a brown handle wasn't flashy enough for him, damn it!). Final shout – huzzah for the LexZex! (gets back to manically scribbling fanart for them)

DarkStarPhoenix: Well, the question of Riku will be answered by the end of the fic. (runs away from oncoming projectiles for that blatantly dumb statement) Anyway, no, there wasn't much of a plotline in the last chapter. Basically it was 'let's move Cid and the Heartless from spot A to spot B and have Exposition!ChesireCat on the way.' Oh well. Thanks for the compliment on my explanation. 'Alice' is indeed twisted – so much freaking fun, though! (cackles manically as she fires up her game again for more… research. Yeah. Research. Even in Nightmare Mode. Really!)

Li the Twilight Knight: Ah, thanks much! (munches on her own review cookie, glad the hellish plushie is distracted) Gotta finish sewing that little bastard some day. Anyway, that comic sounds pretty cool. Like 'Fractured Fairytales' on crack. Ahhh, let's relive the Rocky and Bullwinkle moment. (happy dance) Thanks for the review cookie, and hope you liked this chapter!

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(prances off as the Ansem plushie smacks his forehead before tossing her new kitten onto the 'submit review' feature to let Seiki (henceforth known as Super-Sei) chew the crud out of it) 


	35. Swap

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 35  
The Ex-SOLDIER…? – Swap

I raced with the man I'd found myself with across the dilapidated floor of the odd building we were encased in.

I certainly hoped that he knew where he was going. I had no clue. Everything was rather unfamiliar.

Last thing I recall, I was staring down the end of a gun's barrel. Then there was a sharp crack, the explosion of a round escaping the offending weapon's muzzle. A burst of dark smoke in my eyes, the flash of bright light accompanying the detonation of gunpowder that made possible the bullet's flight. That was followed by horrible pain racing along my veins, blood flowing hotly from my body, the cruel laughter of those who had me surrounded. My vision darkened completely. My voice sounded rough to my own ears as I growled out an obscenity directed at my attackers. Upon the edge of my fading hearing, I distinctly caught the shuffling of boots in the dirt around my fallen body and the clatter caused by more guns being drawn, more barrels being pointed at my form.

I remember that I smiled even as my senses were overrun by the explosive sounds of machinegun fire, the acrid odor of gunpowder smoke racing from heated steel, the sharp thump of bullets punching into my worn and defeated body.

I smiled because I had saved him.

They'd written him off as dead and had chased me down, intent on eliminating the only threat to their employers who could still pose any ill will.

I do suppose that I'd died. I can't really be too certain. From that point, things got incredibly hazy. Faint memories of returning to Aerith and yet seeing her through eyes that had never before set their gaze upon her filled my depleted mind. Recollections of another girl with giant breasts and a hell of a punch (possibly that Tifa girl that had accompanied me in Nibelheim?). A childish teenager with a huge shuriken and a penchant for stealing every last shred of materia around (maybe she was of Wutai?). A guy with a giant spear and a foul disposition. A man with a gun for a right arm and some of the most colorful I'd ever heard. A guy in a ratty old cloak with one hell of a gun and the most despondent sob story this side of that little blond boy's I'd tried to help through SOLDIER training. A robot cat riding a robot… thing… that was actually a spy for some terrible enemy. And….

And….

And I don't freaking know anymore.

As said, everything's quite fuzzy at that point. Like I was there, but I really wasn't there.

Part of my brain says that I was running amuck with that conglomeration of fools trying to save the world. Doing the great duty of any SOLDIER, rescuing poor hapless civilians, prolonging the lives of the flora and fauna, and making the planet a brighter, happier place. Rainbows and pastel posies, dude.

But seriously. The other part doesn't agree with that first part. It says that I died a terrible death and that I never did all that crap. Instead, I was in a huge field of flowers. The afterlife. The Life Stream. Waiting, watching, wishing for the well being of everyone who'd been precious to me during my short stint in the world of the living.

Hell, that second part says that me and Aerith spent many a long day sitting in those flowers, her weaving them into necklaces to drape around my neck and me braiding them into her hair, smiles on our lips punctured only at moments by glances to the world we'd left behind. It says that the only I'd been lacking was that blond twerp I'd been a surrogate big brother to, but I didn't really want to see him – to see him would mean that he'd been slaughtered and somehow managed to reach the Life Stream like I had.

Heck if I know what happened. Of course, with the weird stuff that's been known to happen 'round my kind, I just write it off pretty easily.

I mean, come on. Sephiroth, el numero uno good General of SOLDIER and poster boy for Shinra's army, beloved of all and nice guy extraordinaire with fabulous girl hair going bat-shit crazy, burning tons of innocent people and frolicking in their blood. Then he goes and tries to kill myself and that Tifa girl that had decided to go along with myself and the boy I'd been watching over like a vulture since he'd dropped out of SOLDIER's training command. Talk about screwed up. Never saw that coming.

Never saw getting infused with even more Mako and Jenova cells, either. Never saw getting to see what happened to ordinary people that were stuffed to the breaking point with Mako. Never imagined seeing those monstrosities in their steel prisons, bathed in Mako's green liquid light. Never thought I'd get to run through the library with Sephiroth, learning the horrors of the JENOVA project, learning that he was nothing but an experiment, nothing but the mad dream of the professor named Hojo.

So I guess the apparent loss of time in my life wasn't too strange. Or was it the loss of time in my death? Heck if I know. And heck if I know if it makes a difference.

One minute I'm lollygagging around in that flowery field we all come to associate with the afterlife that's encased in the Life Stream – or some dark semblance of it with no sun in the sky and no stars overhead, flowers fluttering in an unseen and seemingly diabolical wind.

The next I'm in a weird little room with a trio of children dressed only in pants with their grotesquely smiling little skulls in various forms of complete disarray next to a feral-looking guy in leather and a bloodied t-shirt who was holding the weirdest sword I've ever seen.

A few words were exchanged. A few comforts were given – apparently, I guess I needed them. For some reason my mouth tasted like foodless vomit.

Oh, that'd explain it! One of those kids had the top of his head sawed off and his brain was jiggling around. Talk about demented.

Made me wonder if Hojo's around here somewhere. Got a few more little projects lined up, did he?

Anyway, he'd torn out of the room we'd been in at full speed, his heavy boots pounding on the wooden floor beneath us. I was hot on his heels – apparently he was an ally. And if I'd learned anything during my time in SOLDIER, it was that an ally is always a good thing to have. Especially if he looks somewhat competent. And especially if he seems to have any inkling as to what's going on.

I wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Some of those would-be macho bastards I used to work with would scoff at the notion of accepting help. Those would-be macho bastards never made it to First Class like I did, either. Heh.

He'd not slowed his run when we'd burst into a commons area. Instead he swung his odd sword a bit forward to lead his body, gripping the base of its gun handle with both hands. Ah hah! A two-handed weapon!

A grin marked my face even as I swung my Buster Swo… wait a second. I wasn't holding my Buster Sword.

Scowling, I glared at the spear that was in my hand instead of my trusty weapon.

What the hell!

Maybe I really did die and somehow come back. Only that could explain why I wouldn't have my favorite sword with me. Especially considering all that I'd gone through to earn that thing!

Screw it. Spear it was. After all, a SOLDIER's well trained in all weapons so that in the event that we're caught with something we're not proficient with, at least we can defend ourselves. And me being a First Class SOLDIER, I was halfway decent with just about anything I could put my hands on.

Which was a damned good thing – the moment my apparent partner in crime lashed forward with his sword, I finally got a good look at what we were going to fight.

Strange shadowy critters were scampering about, seeming to ooze from the darkness of the room itself. Bright yellow eyes peered from the blackest recesses of the area.

"Yo! You keep low, I head high! I'm not overly proficient with a spear, ya know?" I shouted to the only other human in the room. "Let loose and we should have a good time!"

I caught a flash of a surprised look on his face before he obeyed without question, ducking underneath a rickety looking staircase to slash wildly at the antennae-bearing creatures that were scampering around there.

With a leap I made it to the staircase and barreled up the steps as quickly as I could, swinging my spear wildly before me as I would my sword. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!" I shouted.

I was shocked with the sharp end of my spear caught and dug into one of those shadowy things. It actually had substance! They were physical creatures!

Tearing my weapon free, watching with sheer fascination as it flung inky black stuff onto the walls and the creature I'd struck burst into thick smoke and dissipated, I blinked. "Interestin'," I mouthed. "Well, at least I know I can kill you guys! Bring it!"

And man, did they bring it.

In an instant nigh on twenty of them leapt into the air, converging on my location with sharply clawed hands held out, murder glinting in those bright yellow eyes of theirs. I let a deep war cry burst from my throat as I lashed with my spear, sweeping a good number of them from the proverbial sky before they fell upon me.

I flailed, punching with one hand as I felt them sink their claws into my flesh, tearing at my skin and spilling my blood. My fists were connecting, but they were doing nothing.

Crap!

Moments later, a flash of neon blue filled my eyes. The black shadow things scampered before reorganizing and lunging at me once more.

Gathering my wits, I snatched my spear solidly in both hands and leapt towards them. Something flapped at my left, propelling me with inhuman speed to my target.

I barreled straight through the conglomeration of shadow-beasts, spearing a goodly number of them on my way. Planting my feet down, some deranged instinct caused that thing that flapped earlier to spread and slow me down to a nearly instantaneous halt, I turned.

My partner in crime had arrived on the top walkway, his weird weapon slashing through those things I'd burst through with beautiful ease.

"Neh, what about the ground level?" I asked, arching a brow even as I planted the butt of my spear on the ground and leaned against it lazily.

"Being taken care of. They finally made it into the schoolhouse. Found them in the next room over when the Neo-Shadows called a Large Body and it punched the door down."

"They?" I asked, arching my other brow. I wasn't aware that we had other companions in this place! Cool! The more the merrier, I always say. And yes, that's in all occasions. Though I doubt Aerith would agree with me. Always was a little prudish in that respect. Insert snide grin here.

The man in front of me narrowed his eyes slightly. Oh. Guess I let my mental snide grin slip onto my lips. Oopsie.

"So anyway, cool sword," I started off. Congeniality, of course, is my middle name. And there's no more congenial way to kick off a conversation with an apparent ally you know nothing about than to compliment his weapon. "Never seen one like that. How the hell does it work? Shoot bullets like a gun, slash like a sword?"

His eyes sprang wide. "Why are you asking me that?"

"I've never seen one, as previously stated." Huh. Obviously this guy was a little slow on the uptake.

"Yes you have. You've been seeing it since we met at the Coliseum."

I helplessly blinked even as the person who was taking care of the crap downstairs marched up to our level, cursing and grumbling all the while.

I noticed the moving shadow at his side.

"Hey, watch it! There's one of those things!" I blurted, readying my weapon and making to strike it down.

It yelped and ducked into the floor, becoming nothing more than a stain on the wood.

My spear was knocked clean out of my hands by that neon-colored weapon held by the cranky-looking guy with the scar on his face. Left my hands shaking uncontrollably and pain shooting through my wrists and up my arms, too. That hurt! Bad! Like I'd just smashed my spear down onto an electrified wire or something!

"Oh, I get it! The trigger fires a round, but it stays internal to the weapon," I commented, my eyes quickly taking in the sight of small licks of flame dying on the combination weapon in the scar-faced guy's hands. Lazy smoke drifted from the revolving ammunition chamber of the weapon even as the shell from the expended round clattered on the ground and he busied himself with loading in a replacement for the bullet. "The bullet slams into that pin-thing that connects with the blade and vibrates the ever-livid shit out of it! Cool design. Must really up the power of a hit, neh?"

He rolled those silver eyes at my observations. "Congratulations, Cloud. You've effectively paraphrased exactly what I told you the first time you asked me how my gunblade works."

Cloud…?

"Neh, you hit your head or somethin', Spiky?" the old guy who'd been walking with that shadowy thing at his heels asked, his brow furrowing as he gritted his teeth tightly, mashing the filter to his smoldering cigarette further. Whoa, did he look like something out of a Saturday night horror flick! All wrinkly and prune-like. Nasty.

Gathering my wits, I flashed an easy grin and shrugged. "Not that I know of."

"Well, Leon, nice t'see you again," the blond snorted at the guy I'd been running after. "Me an' the Shadow here had a helluva time trying to get in this fuckin' place, lemme tell you."

"I'm not interested in hearing your sob story, Cid," 'Leon' growled. "We've got a way to find. The Neo-Shadows and their comrades in this schoolhouse are eradicated for now. We need to move on."

I watched them carefully. Something flapped lazily behind me.

"Aren't ya gonna put that fuckin' thing up, Cloud? Givin' me the willies to stare at you with it flappin' away. Bad enough you look like a damned corpse. That just heightens the creepiness," the older man, 'Cid,' snarled.

"Cloud…." I breathed quietly. I knew that name!

I knew….

"Cid, look," I heard a voice whisper, oozing from the darkest patches of shadow near the other people I was with. Focusing, I found myself looking at a pair of bright aquamarine eyes with no pupils.

"What at?" the old guy gruffly growled.

"Look at the amount of battle damage they've taken."

Cid paled. "Hot damn…."

"Nothing a potion won't cure!" I proclaimed, my voice chipper and bright as I thrust a fist into the air. "now don't tell me I left those potions back with my Buster Sword."

"You haven't wielded Buster Sword in months," the silver-eyed guy with the 'gunblade' snorted. "You've had First Tsurugi for awhile now. Got it special-ordered from the weapons shop. Watz bitched you out for such a strange order, if you'll recall."

"I don't know what you're talking about…" I mouthed.

It was all so fuzzy.

Why didn't I understand?

Why were they calling me Cloud!

Why….

Closing my eyes, blocking the image of what I was viewing before me, I growled quietly.

Why were these people….

Why were my friends….

They were my friends, right?

Cid… Leon… and….

The Heartless.

They were calling me that name because….

Frowning, I shook my head, rubbing my temple slightly. "The hell…?"

I blinked, staring at Cid. His lips curled in a frown as his gritted teeth pulverized the filter of his now almost completely depleted cigarette. "You sure you're alright there, Cloud?" he asked, his voice genuinely concerned.

Slowly closing my eyes once more, I scowled.

What had just happened?

Why was I here?

Wasn't I just in that auditorium with those insane, mutilated children and Leon?

"Cloud."

I opened my eyes, setting my gaze squarely on Leon's face, focusing on those silver eyes that peered from beneath the heavy liquid splattered across his lids by exploding Heartless. "I… I'm alright," I muttered, slowly folding my arms across myself and gripping my biceps tightly, letting my spear clatter noisily to the ground.

My body shuddered involuntarily as the grin of the Cheshire Cat appeared, menacing and violent as it hovered in empty space. Moments later, it parted, words pouring from the invisible cat's mouth through its shining teeth. "Metaessence is the lifeblood of Wonderland. That of your enemies is especially potent. Find all you can. Use it wisely."

A quick glance to a small ledge put the vision of a floating glowing red light encased in a delicate crystal pyramid in my sight. "Is that it?" I quietly questioned.

Receiving no answer, I meandered to it and lightly rested my fingertips atop the hovering phenomenon. It flashed, the crystal case bursting open.

I dropped onto my rear as the red light that pyramid-shaped case had held flowed over my body. A gasp of shock escaped my lungs.

Then I noticed that some of the gashes that had appeared on my arms during my apparent journey from the auditorium to the walkway we now inhabited had vanished.

"Ha! They _are_ like potions! Thought so," Cid professed as he jabbed his fist into the air.

The Shadow Heartless walked right past me, hopping with delicate ease onto another ledge. Reaching forth with prying fingers, he lightly placed his hand on a hovering….

Was that a crochet mallet?

Sure enough, the Cheshire Cat affirmed my suspicions, his voice floating playfully through the air as it snarled out, "Here's a riddle. When is a crochet mallet like a billy club? I'll tell you – when you want it to be."

I slowly pried myself up from the ground, only to have First Tsurugi shoved into my hands by a disgruntled Cid who growled about the damned thing being way too heavy. The pilot tightened his sash a bit more, glancing down at the Heartless. "I take it you'll be wanting me to hold on to your butcher knife for awhile."

"If you could, I'd be much obliged. I don't have much of a sheath for the Vorpal Blade," his voice sighed as it floated to our ears.

"Not a problem." Turning his gaze to Leon, Cid wrinkled his nose. "So, glorious leader, where to now?"

Leon glared coldly at us all, his eyes glowing fiercely.

The Cheshire Cat's grin finally settled down, its mad floating stopping as the entire creature formed at Leon's side. Looking at us with gleaming slit eyes, tail lashing furiously, the Cat chuckled. "Only a few find the way; some don't recognize it when they do; some don't ever want to."

"Now what the fuck did he mean by that shit?" Cid snarled.

"Those doors," Leon shrugged casually. "The ones next to those that are banging wildly. They're our destination."

"How do you surmise that?" I softly questioned, still rubbing my head to ward off the headache that was thundering in my skull.

Something was still there. Something was still pestering me. Something was still calling for me to step back and let it handle everything….

Weird.

I was drawn out of my reflections, my startled state at Leon's sudden profession reflected in the sudden spread and draw of my wing.

"Because that's where he nodded towards. The Cat's guiding us. He's seen our dedication to obliterating the Heartless, so he's trying to lead us to the White Rabbit." Turning on his heel, he tightened his grip on his gunblade, slow red blood sliding along its pommel to play in its revolving bullet chamber as it leaked from the gashes that littered his arms. "Now walk. We don't have forever."

The Heartless stood at my side, his newest weapon clutched to his chest as his aquamarine eyes stared with bright concern first at myself, then at Leon. "You two are hurt. We should really hunt down that Metaessence first."

"Fuck that. We'll deal with it later," Leon bit, shooting a glare that promised a tormented death over his shoulder. "Now walk before I give in to the urge to turn you into a stain on the ground."

The Shadow gulped audibly as he took a shaky step forward. Reaching down, I put a hand on his stooped back to gently help him along.

"We'll be fine," I muttered reassuringly to him.

"That's what you think," the Shadow responded, a hiss marking his proclamation. "You'll be fine if you don't lose yourselves completely."

_-tbc-_

* * *

Ah, the fun of playing with someone's head. 

Kudos to you who caught the obvious impact of that last chapter. I like it when he comes out to play. If you didn't get it at all, then… eh… I'd say go play FF7. Experience the wonder of the black-haired porcupine-headed freakily chipper guy! Huzzah! I heart him. Especially with Aerith. But that's my bias and me. LexZex, CloudLeon (hm. We could call that Cleon. But that sounds like bad Star Trek fanfiction), Sqinoa, and Zaerith (ai ya! Huge spoiler right there! D'oh. Insert the slapping of the forehead)! Yippee! (continues grinning even as she's plastered with a gigantic label professing her to be the freak she is)

And if I got the characterization completely wrong, tell me. I sent it through three FF7 fanboys before posting it and they all professed it was good, but we could all be entirely off our rockers.

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Review replies: 

Angl: Oh craptastic. I hate it when I give other people good ideas for ficstalking weapons. (sheepish laugh) Argh. First, thanks for reviewing! Second, yeeeeessssss, my precious. The good Doctor Reinhardt isn't exactly one of the chipper happy 'good' people. Like him all you want. He's coming straight out of the movie, so I'm not going to do anything to him that wasn't done there. Neh heh heh. I'm updating as fast as real life will let me! And I'm trying to keep you people happy! No flinging wet noodles! (runs away)

DarkStarPhoenix: Ah, the fun of crappy public access and school computers. Huzzah! What I get to experience at work every day. (gag, die) There actually was some plot development in that last chapter… (bows head) It was all Sora-centric and Black Hole based, but there was some. Guess I didn't make it obvious enough. That scene and the dinner scene that Sora's going to go through soon enough are some of the most revealing in the movie. I'll take more care with my sentences – I do get long-winded from time to time, don't I? (blush) Anyway, thanks much for the review! (humble bow)

scarlettHuntress: Ai ya! Does no one love Sora? (takes a moment to cuddle the sobbing Keyblade Master that everyone disregards for Cloud and Leon) Aw, poor little goob in clown shoes! All anyone else sees is another step towards CL. At least I love him. (sniff sniff) Anyway. Neh heh heh. I liked the 'Are you thinking he's thinking what I'm thinking he's thinking?' line as well. Just seemed like a very… Sora thing to be said. I would have loved Goofy to be there to attempt to reply to that. (snicker) Thanks for reviewing!

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(punts the plushie clear of Super-Sei's claws and snickers as he splats face first into the 'submit review' menu option with a groan of 'SUBMIT!') Ah. That felt good. 


	36. Book

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N 1: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For additional A/Ns and review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 36  
The SeeD Commander – Book

My world was steadily falling into an abyss of pain.

My arms felt like they were ready to fall off of my body. My muscles ached from continually wielding my gunblade. My skin was nearly completely torn off of my forearms, strings of it hanging loosely from my flesh and teasingly brushing past my knuckles. Blood was making the hilt of Lionheart impossibly slick, tracing slim rivers down my battered and lacerated hands. My shoulders hurt not only from the strain of wielding my weapon but also from being cut to pieces by the claws of Heartless and the lances of those obnoxious cards and the hands of those banshee creatures. My back hurt, my skull ached, my heart thundered heavily in my chest with painful straining. My shirt was stained not only with the greasy ink that remained after Heartless splattered when slaughtered and the red spewing blood of my enemies but with my own vitae, open wounds on my chest and back that danced over my ribs weeping puss into the discolored fabric I wore. Hell, even my feet hurt. I was tempted to kick my boots off and abandon them. However, they were all that were protecting my aching toes from the sharp shards of glass and jagged stones and slivers of broken wooden boards so they earned the right to stay in their place.

I felt dizzy from blood loss, my sight continually fading in and out of darkness, my steps not nearly as sure as I was certain I was making them appear to be. A part of me wanted to listen to that Heartless' words; stopping and getting that Metaessence stuff that Cloud used might indeed be a great idea. It did, after all, seem to instantaneously heal some of the blond's wounds and bring his eyes back into focus. However, getting out of the damned reaches of Wonderland more quickly was more appealing than extending my time in its depths to seek out the healing crystalline containers.

I wanted out, and be damned if I was going to wait for anyone else – I wouldn't let anyone hinder my progress. Cid and that Shadow Heartless could rot for all I cared.

The only other person I cared about was Cloud. He was coming with me. I didn't care if he didn't want to. Tough. He had no choice. I wouldn't wait for him; I'd drag him along at my pace.

Even if Cloud was freaking me out.

After all, when a person suddenly swaps personalities, it's a bit eerie.

I recognize that my behavior as of late might have been a touch less tempered, but at least I didn't adopt an entirely new personality and go flailing about, apparently unaware that I was asking redundant questions and smiling like a moron.

The Cloud behind me at the moment seemed to be the Cloud I was used to. The grim, sullen, quiet young man who flopped violently between cute and pathetic, the man who could be so endearing and yet so frustrating with every passing moment, the person I'd known since coming across him at the Olympus Coliseum all those months ago. The soft-spoken man with the gravity-defying hair and shy blushes, whose smile was almost as rare as my own, who seemed as content to follow as to fly randomly into battle with a cry on his lips and murder in those beautiful glowing blue eyes of his.

He was the rare gem I'd found all those months ago, morosely slinking about in the dungeon-like depths of the Coliseum's recesses, his sinfully perfect face sad and lovely with soft, pouting lips and long blond lashes dusting across pale cheeks. That vision with his slender build, perfectly proportioned limbs carrying well-defined and lean muscle that hinted towards the impossible strength his small frame contained. That being that encouraged second glances and disbelieving stares, awed gawking at the grace and supple beauty that was inherit in every movement that he made.

What he was earlier….

That certainly wasn't Cloud.

I don't know exactly what that was. All I know is that it wasn't Cloud. Cloud didn't plan like that. He didn't smile like that. He didn't encourage his counterparts in battle like that. He didn't chatter aimlessly like that. He didn't flail like that. He didn't hop along like a defunct crack-ridden rabbit like that. He didn't bounce on his toes when he walked like that. He didn't speak with wild hand gesturing like that.

On top of all of that, Cloud never repetitiously asked questions. Once I'd answered a question, he never bothered to ask it again. He had enough of a brain to recall whatever information I'd imparted onto him – that was a rather nice trait of his. He was smart, despite his sometimes rather blithe and obtuse behavior.

Cloud planning and cheerfully flailing into battle with smiles and laughter and bouncing and hyperactivity was akin to standing before Ultimecia while she spread her arms and cursed the existence of SeeD for disrupting time compression and attempting to stop her. Both were terrifying. Both seemed to spell the end of the world. Apocalypse, I tell you.

I was determined to keep my eye on him. I was planning to keep him firmly adhered to my side.

If he did anything outrageously out of the ordinary, I'd tie him up and haul him over my shoulder. Screw it. He wasn't going to put me at any unnecessary risk. He wasn't staying behind, either.

There was no way I was abandoning him. He's _mine_. And what belongs to me doesn't get left behind. I suppose I could be defined as being fairly possessive.

With his strange flippancy in personality, I was curious to know if he was even aware that he's mine.

Perhaps I'd have to stress that fact if he showed any further deviation in persona.

I noted with some satisfaction that he was following as I shoved the doors the Cat had nodded towards open, letting my eyes survey what the next room revealed.

It was a giant library.

I watched with bland disinterest as the child that was before us stared blankly into space while making little 'vroom' noises with his mouth before shuffling about on his hands and knees.

Pathetic.

Perhaps I should put the brat out of his misery – the damned little insane kid probably wouldn't know what hit him if I put my gunblade through his skull and pulled the trigger. Hell, his freed spirit might even thank me for the release from his obviously encumbered fleshy prison.

Taking my first step into the enormous room, staring up at bookshelves that towered feet above me with their giant books beckoning with hidden wisdom, I surveyed my surroundings.

I was in a straight passageway that joined another in a t-intersection. The child was crawling about in the middle of our walkway, a hindering obstacle but not one that would halt our progression. Somewhere in the distance a soft tinkling sound could be heard. Yells emitted form large throats, deep threatening voices reverberating as they echoed across some unexplored empty expanse, rang from areas of the library we'd yet to see.

My lips curled with a feral sneer. I recognized the particular tone those deep voices carried.

There were more card soldiers ahead. Fun.

"Wow," I heard the Heartless' creepy voice float. "And here I thought the library at that fortification you were all living in was large."

"Shit, Hollow Bastion's library ain't got nothin' on this," Cid gruffly snorted. "Looks like the kind of place ol' Vinny might be in, ya think?"

"If he's alive," Cloud's voice softly professed. "I'd still like to point out how I got his cape and his glove."

"Whatever," I snarled, adding my own gravely voice to the fray. "Let's check. Cid, you and the Heartless stick together. Cloud, you're with me. There's a larger expanse of library around the corner – I can hear voices echoing over there. Be on your toes. There are enemies ahead."

You're intending that we split up if we come to any forks in the path?" the Heartless questioned, his aquamarine eyes staring at me.

"Yeah. Two groups can search faster than one, obviously. Common fucking sense. Now move," I replied.

I didn't bother looking back at them as I took my first step into the library's walkway. Glancing down at the child that was still roving around on his hands and knees, I scowled.

A swift kick to his side moved him out of our way.

"Leon!" I heard three voices cry out over the sudden and pained sobs of the boy on the floor, all three aghast and horrified.

I ignored them.

Instead, I charged down the left corridor when I reached the end of my straight walkway, the startled scream of the child having encouraged a bellowed war cry from a card somewhere close by. Three steps put me on top of my foe. A slash of my blade separated his head from his body. A sharp thrust of my fist into the diamond shape in the center of his flat body sent blood flowing under my nails and over my wrist even as I curled my fingers around the crystalline object that rested within its fleshy container. Ripping the Metaessence pyramid free, I flung it behind me, Cloud's fast reflexes barely saving him from being clunked between the eyes with it. "Use that," I ordered before taking off again.

Rounding a corner, I stared with wide eyes.

It was larger than I'd expected.

Three levels of towering bookshelves and rickety floors stood before me, separated left and right sides of the room containing their own segregated tomes of information. In the center wall directly across the humongous room from my location was a simple indentation flush with the third floor, a large book beckoning there. No visible stairway lead from the first floor to the second – only a tiny portion of a spiral stairway attached to a pole to my left was visible. Directly above my head I found a single connection between the left and right sides of the room – a slender catwalk stretched from one side of the huge place to the other, joining the second floors. No obvious way to reach the third floor was visible. Cards roved every level, pacing with maddening certainty around their stations.

As the others caught up to me, I pointed above my head. "Cloud and I will head to the right. Cid, brat, you two stay left. Cover us by getting those damned projectile throwing cards down."

The Heartless slowly scratched his round chin with sharp claws. "There's a door marked 'Star Observatory' on the side we're assigned, Leon."

"I see it," I snorted. "But we're searching for Cloud's friend first. Once we've searched the entire place, then we'll go to the observatory."

"Got'cha," Cid grunted. "So now the question – how the fuck do we get up to the next floor?"

Cloud pointed to the small chunk of staircase. "Well, we've seen a balloon that could support all of our combined weight. We've seen tentacles that can bore through solid stone. We've even seen cards that can bleed and die. Maybe that set of stairs can carry us."

I shrugged even as Cid and the Heartless looked at it with doubt in their eyes. "Fine. Let's give it a try." Grabbing Cloud's wrist, I dragged him with me.

Sure enough, as soon as we were solidly in place on the small piece of stairwell, it spiraled up the post it was attached to and took us directly to that little catwalk I'd noted while below. "Perfect," I muttered.

Even as the staircase slid back down its track to return to the first floor, I scanned the area. The cards had yet to notice that we'd arrived, still patrolling their preset paths.

The Cheshire Cat faded into view, sneering at us with its sharply fanged grin. "Steps to enlightenment brighten the way, but the steps are steep," his scratchy voice hissed even as he laid a large, clawed paw on a bookcase and nudged it. As the huge case toppled back, its top thudding solidly into a hole carved deliberately in the floor of the level above it to form an impromptu ramp, the Cat nodded even a he faded away once more. "Take them one at a time."

"There's our path," I pointed out to Cloud. "Let's make a break for it."

"Aren't we going to wait for Cid and the Heartless to get up here?" he timidly asked.

"No. They have their instructions. Hopefully they're intelligent enough to follow them," I gruffly replied even as I nudged my partner towards the catwalk.

We darted across, fortunately unseen, arriving in the shelter of the shadows behind a bookcase on the other side of the massive space that segregated the two sides of the huge library. "Neh, Leon," Cloud's voice softly whispered to me, "look at that."

'That' happened to be a hovering book surrounded in blue light, the source of the soft tinkling sound I'd noted earlier. Even as Cloud delicately laid the clawed tips of his left hand's glove upon its binder, it burst into motion, flapping its covers like the wings of a bird and flying off. We followed its path with wide and astonished eyes.

I smirked as I noted its behavior. "It's floating by the third floor. That's how we can reach that book in that supposedly unreachable alcove."

Unfortunately, the fluttering of the book drew the attention of every guard in the joint. Yells surrounded us even as books started being blasted off the shelves by the explosions of the bomb-like projectiles thrown by our enemies.

"Take cover!" I barked at Cloud even as I charged form our hiding place to where I heard our nearest adversary's footsteps ringing. Flinging myself around the bookcase we'd been using as shelter, I came face to face with a snarling spade.

His lance nicely deflected the swing of my gunblade, much to my frustration. The curved protrusions of his weapon's tip tangled with the more delicate design of Lionheart, ensnaring it and holding it solidly at bay. I couldn't pull a hand away from my gunblade's hilt to lash forward with a fist, given how much strength he was pushing his lance with – any removal of a grip on my weapon would weaken my resistance to his attack. My feet were solidly planted against the ground to shove back against his attempts to approach and close the miniscule distance between our snarling faces, preventing any kicks.

Given my options, I lashed forward with my teeth, digging them into the card's slight neck and tearing through flesh and vein. Blood swam in my mouth, coating my tongue and threatening to trickle down my throat even as I wrenched away from my screaming adversary. As he staggered back and cried out in pain, I finally had the opportunity to push my attack, stepping forward and sliding my gunblade deftly out of its tangled condition and down his lance's length to slice off the fingers that held its shaft.

As the lance clattered to the ground, I tore Lionheart straight through the card's middle, severing it in half. The Metaessence container that floated from its body was batted solidly towards my blond companion, crashing into him and splitting open even as he finished driving his ample blade through the other space that was on our side of the library.

He grimaced as he rubbed the small of his back, massaging away the bruise that threatened to form where the crystalline Metaessence pyramid had crashed into him. "That hurt, bastard," he growled at me.

I shrugged without care as I flicked Lionheart towards the ground, flinging the thick blood that coated it onto the gnarled wood we stood upon even as I swallowed the pooled blood in my mouth. "But it healed your wounds. Live with it."

His eyes narrowed considerably as he kept his glare on my face. "I told you before, Leon. Don't watch my back. I don't need it."

"If you didn't, you wouldn't have gotten hurt. Quit whining."

Cloud snorted softly. "If anyone needs another person to watch his back, it's you. You should us the next Metaessence container we find. You look like-"

I couldn't stand listening to his soft condescending proclamations any longer. Instead, I interrupted him, silencing him with another kiss.

I don't know why I'd not resorted to this earlier. It felt nice. It was something I'd been wanting to do for so very long.

Since we'd met, I'd been fascinated with his beauty and grace, drawn by his melancholic attitude with a longing to make things better in his life, to protect his spirit from being shattered as completely as my own had been. I'd been enthralled with his perfection, with his mystifying good looks, with his cherubic face and gorgeous glowing eyes. I'd lusted to make him mine, to encase him in my arms. I'd confessed to Rinoa that I wanted to see if he could help my heart open once again, if he could help me melt the layers of ice I'd allowed to frost over my soul.

I knew I was attracted to him. I knew that I wanted him.

What I didn't know was why I hadn't acted on my longings and taken him as my own yet. I knew what I wanted.

Fuck it all. There was nothing to stop me from taking what I wanted.

Pressing him against the bookcase behind him, keeping my lips locked with his, I pressed my mouth so tightly against his that my teeth threatened to bruise his lips. My tongue slid along the entrance of his mouth, trying desperately to force its way inside. My hand tightened its grip on his chin, the other sliding down to his side to grip him tightly and hold him in place.

Cloud was apparently too stunned to move away, his eyes huge as he stared into my glower. His hands rose to my shoulders.

If he thought he was pushing me away, he had another thought coming.

I pressed a leg between his, my body fitting tightly against his, my lips adhered to his. As his jaws parted slightly I pushed my tongue into him, tasting his sweet saliva mingle with the blood of the card that was still in my mouth. I released his chin, gripping his shoulder instead as tightly as I could and pushing him even more firmly against the bookcase he was trapped against. The hand that rested on his side moved to tear his belt away. My ears caught the distinct ring of metal colliding with wood as a part of his buckle hit the floor.

Gripping the front of his pants, I tore my hand away from his body, listening as the button on his pants snapped and the zipper protested loudly even as it gave way. He squirmed as I pushed my fingers down between the elastic of his exposed boxers and his creamy, smooth skin.

I sighed in complete pleasure as my fingers brushed through impossibly soft curly hair. Lightening the pressure I was putting on his mouth, easing my kiss into something gentle and serene, I slid my hand further down into the warm land it had found. Cloud shivered slightly, the pressure he'd been applying on my shoulders easing off even as my fingertips brushed along the warm and smooth skin that nest of hair surrounded.

Then he started returning my kiss, pressing against my mouth even as his tongue lightly brushed over my own and slid between my teeth.

Suddenly Cloud was wrenching himself away, gagging and coughing brightly, a hand clenched over his stomach.

Anger flared over every last sense I had. "What the fuck?" I bit, bending over to grab the back of his cape near his neck and wrench him upright.

He had a slightly green sheen across his deathly white face as he fought off a fit of nausea. "Y-You taste like their blood," he stammered out.

I scowled before stalking away. The next hovering book I found got kicked solidly, sending it spiraling out of control for a few moments before it oriented itself and flew to its predetermined position to hover.

One more card, a tromp up the ramp the Cat had created for us, two more cards and all three Metaessence containers from those bodies lobbed at Cloud later, we were standing on the third floor and overlooking the suicidal jump from the wooden platform upon which we stood to the first of the hovering books.

Apparently there had been these hovering tomes on the other side of the room as well – there were four in place, whereas we had only located two throughout our little jaunt. Cid and the Heartless were replicating our expeditions.

Handing Cloud my gunblade, I carefully judged the distance I would have to leap. A grimace turned my lips even as I hooked my thumbs in the top of my leather pants. "Shit," I softly muttered.

I had no allusions of grandeur here. If I slipped, I'd die.

That's why I was a bit shocked when Cloud handed me back my gunblade. The extra weight….

And he handed me First Tsurugi. "That book, right? I'll get it down for you," his soft, calm voice quietly said, barely sliding along my ears.

What, didn't he trust my abilities? Talk about an easy way to piss me off.

Then I realized how silly I was being when he flapped his wing before leaping casually off the edge of our floor.

Of course he should be the one doing that crap. He could somewhat fly.

Shrugging, I watched as he carefully made his way from one book to the next, his wing flapping a bit at intervals to keep him from toppling off his slowly drifting platforms of hovering books. One final jump landed him next to that book in the remote alcove, next to the Cheshire Cat who'd decided once more to pop into reality. Even as the Cat hissed his advice to, "Treat it like a Chinese box or a stuck lid. A tap in the right place might help," and Cloud booted it right off its resting place, I ran down to the second floor and leapt down to the first. My ears barely caught the Cat's lamentation of, "You call that a tap? Fortunate I didn't suggest force. You might have pulverized it."

The lock on the book's cover had burst open when it had impacted the ground. Grabbing a loose page I flipped it, staring at its contents.

The words slowly shifted, letters arranging themselves before my eyes. I blinked, staring, marveling at what I was seeing. Apparently the book's content was specific for each person that looked upon its pages.

I suppressed the urge to gasp as the book displayed coordinates and a familiar name to me. Grabbing the page, I ripped it out of the tome and quickly stuffed it into my pants, finding the hidden pocket I had sewn into the back of my boxers with swift certainty. "Come on, Cloud. We need to catch up with Cid and the Heartless," I called out.

A leathery flap and the light thud of boots landing next to me announced his arrival. He looked at me with wary, frightened eyes even as he finally banished that wing of his, hiding it with a crackle of magic and a pained gritting of his teeth. "Leon…" he softly whispered, his voice shaken and his statement drifting into nonexistence even as he curled his fingers around unusually thin and pale yet completely unscathed arms.

I knew somewhere in the back of my mind that he was concerned for my well being, that he was frightened of how the pain of the continual fighting was affecting me. His concern was… touching. Something that I felt I should have been replicating, but for some odd reason my concern was drawn more inward with every developing fight. Like I was losing my ability to care about anyone's desires but my own.

Sighing, I leaned over and gave into my innermost longings again; this time I placed a light kiss on Cloud's cheek, watching as I was instantly rewarded with red coloration on his pale face. "Let's go."

His steps were flooded with nervousness as he obeyed, walking a good five feet behind me as I made my way towards the location of the door to the observatory where the others were probably waiting for us.

_-tbc-_

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A/N 2: Eh heh. If you're looking for more intense Cloud and Leon action, you're going to have to wait a little bit. It _is_ going to happen in the future – however, with Leon currently a bit wacked out and Cloud dancing with his long dead buddy in la-la land, Wonderland's not the best place and now is _not_ the best time. Patience, my children. (waves hands)

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Review replies:

Manders1953: Woot! Let's hear it for Zack! Yeah, saw plenty of concept art and demo screenshots for Crisis Core. Three simple opinions: Cute!Zack, SexGod!Sephiroth… and Weenie!Cloud. Gaw. I want to smack the crap out of the blond and profess his weenieness to his face. Save that he'd probably burst into tears at that. (smacks her forehead) Mwa hah! Yes, I stole directly from FF7. And I'm having fun doing it. No one can stop me! (manic cackling) Well, save you guys telling me that I suck. (sheepish grin) Thanks for the review!

scarlettHuntress: Yeah, I hear you on Zack there. Can't hate the guy when he has 'round five minutes of screen time. (laughs) But calling Sora a step? Aww! Poor li'l unappreciated Sora-head! (snuggles the hated Keyblade Master) Sheesh. (snerk) Thanks for reviewing!

Raz: First off, thanks for reviewing! Second, I blush fitfully at all of your praise. Really! But that twist was too good to let pass. After all, with Wonderland warping everyone, I had to take a stab at Cloud; my wee brain said there was no other way for him to go. He'd been down this road before, so there's no reason it can't be revisited. Neh heh heh. Everyone's views are being visited – after all, if I'm going to pull off Wonderland by the time Sora and gang finish up in The Black Hole, I've got to start doing oodles of chapters per Sora escapade, neh? And I'm making the game tame by comparison? (flush) Thanks!

Kitty Kyinsky: Yep, Cloudster is fun. It's a humorous hoot to write him – Leon's just a bit… eerie. As in I dreaded writing the chapter I just posted because of his mind's peculiar warping. Eck. Zack's merrily waving back with a big grin and daisies sticking out of his spiked black hair (don't ask). :) Thanks for reviewing!

DarkStarPhoenix: Well, if you're curious, you can wikipedia it. If you have patience, I shall bring all to you, my child. (deep li'l bow, Cheshire grin) Last chapter, as many others commented correctly on, Cloud's brain decided to unleash Zack upon us once more; he's an old comrade of Cloud's (I like to call him his first male role model after the Shinra poster child (Sephiroth)) whose decidedly ended existence became the base for many of Cloud's memories. Strange story. Will be explained in future chapters. And… (rings gong) Updated!

Angl: Mwe heh heh. Zack's story's one that's so universal it's almost sad. Glad you're happy he's here! And thanks for the review!

Shadow Cat17: Aw, thank you for your compliments! I thoroughly enjoy writing Cid – it's easy. It's like writing myself, only changing my gender, making me smoke, giving me a gawd awful accent and adding fourteen years. (sweatdrop) Cid and the Heartless as a team is an irresistible thought for me. They work so well, especially with the Heartless being able to communicate in the land of loonies. :) And Leon's not necessarily losing his mind… he's losing something a bit more… specific. Mwa ha ha! Hope this chapter satiated your need for more story for a short time!

Dark Mog: Oh, so I've made my pleasure with mucking through American McGee's Wonderland obvious, eh? Heh. Guess so. It _is_ so much fun. And if your desk ate it, it's available through Amazon, actually! Let's hear it for my favorite one-stop shopping place! As for old movies, I recently found an old classic in my collection of Betamax tapes I wish I could use – 'The Cat From Outer Space.' Also stumbled across 'Flight of the Navigator.' Neh heh heh. Still going to have to flip a coin about which movie, 'Oliver' and 'Roger Rabbit,' that is. 'Tron.' Haven't seen that in so long. I love it! I'm glad you're trying to follow 'The Black Hole' chapters. Cheesy old movie, but great in its own way. Maximilian scared the begeezus outta me when I was a shrimp. (hangs head) Anyway, done with courses, eh? Congratz, and hope they went well! And thank you so much for reviewing!

Li the Twilight Knight: Well, the questions behind Zackie-poo will be answered soon enough. Glad you enjoyed his cameo appearance! And… (sniff) Sora's been boring to this point? (fidgets uncontrollably) Eh… glad you found him interesting for once in the last chapter, though! And thanks for reviewing!

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(marches through and snidely grins as she watches her kitten maul the Ansem plushie) Neh heh heh. Just tell him to submit. I'm certain he will. 


	37. Separating

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 37  
The Gummi Expert – Separating

A yawn roared past my lips as I stood up and stretched. Blinking blearily, I groaned as I scratched my butt and smacked my lips, my eyes narrowed as I surveyed my surroundings.

Yet another morning had opened to the rat-hole that was now my personal Hell. Once again it'd proven itself to be a fucking reality rather than the lousy nightmare I continually longed for it to be.

I was really, really damned sick of seeing Wonderland.

You know, Sora prattled on for ages about this place. About how, except for the Heartless invasion, it was rather fun and running on the ceilings played with his fucked-up head. About how he suffered some pretty bad vertigo and massive confusion going from woods to kitchen stove to wall to Queen's court, but it was still a blast.

Pity the brat didn't get to see this damned side of Wonderland. He wouldn't be singing its praises, that's for certain. Fucking twisted place.

At least we weren't in the godforsaken Skool anymore. Nope, that had been left to rot in the sands of time, forcefully shoved into the most ass-washed rivers of memory. Freaky little half-naked grimacing children doing their obscene little dances with their brains jiggling and their heads riveted with spikes were a thing of the past. Once we'd made our way to the Star Observatory and threw ourselves through a few cards to jump into a swirling portal stationed under a warped telescope, we'd flipped the Skool the fucking bird and moved on.

Now I'd found myself in a grotesque smelling forest of fungus and mold, populated with shitty ants who ran amuck with rifles and weren't afraid to use them, mushrooms with teeth that liked to chew on a guy's head, fucking huge roses that tossed their thorns at passers by, hovering ladybugs that dropped boulders on us as we ran around, and wicked bastard fish that tried to chew a man to bits if he dared to set foot in the waters. To make matters worse, those fish tasted bad, too.

It was fucking depressing, I tell you. Every time it seemed that we might be improving our dire situation it simply got worse. We'd gone from building to open forest, from cards with vendettas against all things human to bugs trying to get revenge for every insect a guy's ever squashed with his boots. Of course, life hadn't exactly been sunshine and rainbows for a long while now. Ever since I watched the Planet being consumed by darkness, watched people being slaughtered by the first wave of Heartless that swept across our lands' grounds. Ever since I flew my airship back to her hanger and saw the Heartless prowling around, the darkness sweeping over Rocket Town. Ever since I learned that Shera was dead.

I don't know why I'd been thinking of that so often lately. Sure, her loss was always on my mind. She was my wife. I loved the shit out of her. But I had accepted that she was gone, that according to that screwy-ass wizard in his pointy blue hat would be restored with our world. I'd accepted that as long as I stayed alive and fought the lousy fuckers that demolished my home, I'd get to see her again. That thought kept me happy, kept me sane, kept me going with the redundant crap of day-to-day life.

But ever since coming to Wonderland, I'd been thinking more and more about her. About what her last moments must have been like. About the fact that I wasn't around for her, that I was up in the air staring at the swarming masses of Heartless dancing around while she was having her heart ripped away. About whether or not she was screaming in pain, screaming for me to come save her.

I don't know why, but my mind refused to shake its depressing focus.

I wondered if it was the general atmosphere of Wonderland fucking with me in its own way. Its effects on Cloud and Leon were pretty fucking obvious. I'd thought initially that I was immune to it as I wasn't getting myself pounded to pieces, but I believe maybe it's proving me wrong.

I'm not usually partial to bouts of depression. But lately they've been rolling over me with aggravating regularity.

Hell, I think the only one of us that's faring well is that damned Heartless.

Cloud's obviously losing his mind. Now what's been going on with him ain't so out of the ordinary, I guess. We'd all seen this before; well, 'least the group that used to be on the Planet had. Kinda. Not so severe, though. Last time he was waffling around with his bestest buddy's memories. Now it seemed like, from time to time, he actually _was_ his bestest buddy. Fucking unnerving to talk with that Zack kid, I tell you. Having conversations with someone who's been dead for a good long while and doesn't seem to realize it is eerie as hell. Spending hours on end trying to explain where we are, what we're doing, what that little black ant thingie with the big aquamarine eyes is and who each of us is gets a bit fucking old really fucking fast. Whoever this Zack guy was, he's got a brain like a fucking sieve. God damned moron. If Cloud based himself off that twit, it's no wonder he's a brainless stooge most of his waking fucking hours.

Leon… that guy's scaring the crap out of me on a regular basis. With every passing battle, with every rise of the sun from a restless night, it's like he's less and less that guy I picked up from that funky white building on that decimated world. Every day he's become a bit more animalistic, a bit less human. It's like dealing with a monster – or like dealing with a fucking baby. Both don't give a rat's ass about anyone's needs other than their own. And that's what Leon's been; he's been focusing only on his own desires and his wants, flying into battles we don't need to touch because he wants to taste blood (he actually was licking that green shit the ants spew when they're lopped in half off his fucking gunblade) and marching along until we're all really at the brink of dropping because he wants to get further that night before settling down.

I was stuck in Hell with a monster, an idiot with two different personalities and a fucking Heartless.

How in the cotton pickin' heck could it get much worse?

Letting a sigh rumble from my lips, I glowered at my feet and grit my teeth. "Another fuckin' day," I snarled as I kicked a small pebble near my boot's toe.

Glancing around, I arched a brow. I was alone in our little clearing that we'd decided to use as a bedding-down space last night. All the group's equipment was still there, including Cloud's massive piece of metal compensation and Leon's warped-ass excuse for a sword, so I knew I hadn't been abandoned by the two psychopaths. Comforted by that fact for a moment, I took a second to piss on the communal pissing rock and take care of the ol' morning business. But soon enough, worry started nagging at my brain.

What was worrying me was the fact that the damned little Heartless wasn't around.

See, that guy's liable to get himself into plenty of trouble, 'specially with the natives. They don't much like him. Of course, their world was being raped by them. Guess I can understand them not being able to see right off that he's a good kid underneath that Shadowy exterior.

"Hey! Heartless twit! Where the fuck are ya?" I called out, looking around and peering into my surroundings. I sighed as I saw nothing out of the ordinary – same big gnarled tree roots surrounding our little area, same towering yellow tulips rising into the sickly green sky, same putrid green water lapping lightly against the smelly black mud of the shore, same paltry blades of grass looming overhead. Our little fire made from pieces of mushroom stalk had burned down during the night, its embers smothered by dirt that had been haphazardly kicked over them. The leaves we'd used as overly large blankets were strewn about in complete disarray.

Nope, nothing had really changed since last night. Still no monstrous bugs or evil living plants around. Still no change in the lousy look of my surroundings. Only real change was the fact that my clothes smelled worse. Then again, going without bathing for days on end kind of does that to a guy. Cloud and Leon weren't any damned better – hell, I'd call 'em worse. No cigarette odor to overpower the BO. It was going to be hell after I finished off my last cigarette – not only would I be deprived of my precious nicotine, I'd also be without a mask to my own muskiness. Fucking fabulous thing to look forward to. But we couldn't risk going to the river to bathe – we'd found that out the hard way. Cloud (or was it Zack? I right forget these days) stuck his head down to the surface of it to lick at the disgusting water seein' as how he had no other source for it and he was thirsty. Almost had his hair ripped off by the biggest fucking fish I'd ever seen. Its fangs left rips in his scalp that bled for a good many minutes, too.

I scratched my head, grimacing at the gritty feel of my hair and the skin on my head underneath my calloused fingertips. "Alright, where the fuck are ya?" I muttered.

Craning my neck, I scowled as I listened to the sounds of the morning. The soft rustle of a breeze through the huge plant stalks and the leaves high above. The buzz of distant bugs flying around, not so close that their wing beats sounded like helicopter rotors pounding the air and therefore not anything of a threat. The sickly lapping of that jelly-like water on the shore. The light splashing sounds made by a razor-toothed fish's fin sticking above the river's slimy surface then dipping below again a second later.

Then I caught it; a sound very out of the ordinary was coming from further down the shore. Somewhere in the grass stalks on the other side of the massive tree a fight was raging. Feet were shuffling on the ground, grunts and snarls and panicked shouts were ringing. The sound of a fist hitting flesh met my ears. A disjointed gait was coming in my direction.

Casually grabbing my spear, I scowled even as I stuck a carefully whittle twig between my lips and chewed heartily on its end, trying desperately to stave my urge to have a cigarette in my mouth and maintain my precious supply as long as feasibly possible. I simply arched a brow as the source of that odd shuffled stomping came around the tree's large roots and into view, his warped frame moving as quickly as it could towards me.

"Trouble!" the Heartless' ethereal voice gasped to me.

"Yeah, kinda figured that," I grunted, noting that the sounds of the nearby fight were still going. "What's happenin'?"

As I caught up, the Heartless turned and started his run back to where he'd emerged form. With a snort I started jogging to keep up with him.

"Leon and Cloud. Some altercation between them. Looks like Cloud's trying to rip Leon apart, and he's returning the favor," the Heartless quickly answered.

"Fucking idiots," I groused even as we stepped through a cluster of tall, thick, unmoving grass stalks.

I nearly bit through my twig as I watched the two go at it in the slight clearing that they'd found. They were already banged up and bruised to no end - Cloud was sporting a split lip that was bleeding profusely, red staining his chin and his neck and seeping into his purple SOLDIER uniform shirt. Leon had a hell of a black eye and scratches along his arms from blunt fingernails. Cloud's forearms carried bruises in the shapes of fists. Leon's blood-colored shirt was ripped, displaying purple-colored flesh.

Even as I stared, Cloud's lips curled in a scowl of disdain as his hand lashed forward, grabbing Leon's torn shirt tightly and wrenching the gunblader forward. "Don't fucking touch him again, bastard!" he snarled even as he plowed his right hand's curled fist into the taller brunet's face, his carefully aimed punch missing Leon's nose owing to the fact that he'd turned his head.

I'll do what I damned well please! And why the hell are you saying 'him,' Cloud? What the fuck is wrong with you?" Leon bit back, even as he snapped his hands onto Cloud's shoulders and brought his knee up sharply.

I winced as Cloud gasped, his eyes damned near rolling out of his head as he doubled over. The Heartless beside me whimpered in sympathetic pain as the blond vomited bile and collapsed, clutching desperately to his assaulted groin.

Even as I was unconsciously rubbing my nuts to ward off the illusory pain my brain was imagining Cloud going through, I stared with huge eyes as Leon knelt before the blond, grabbed his spiky hair and wrenched his face up. I was frozen in place as he snatched the smaller man's chin in his free hand, jerking his face up to his level, and planted a kiss on his lips.

Now I knew he was hot for Spiky, but shit!

"Hey, cut the crap!" I shouted as I tromped over, my spear firmly gripped in my right hand as I made my presence known.

Soon enough I was faced with silver eyes that seemed set on ripping my soul out of my flesh. His lips curled slightly in a feral snarl even as he glanced to the spear in my hand.

"I'll fuckin' use it if you attack," I warned.

Luckily he caught my sincerity. Backing down, he released Cloud and rose to his feet. With a snort he turned on his heel and marched off, vanishing with eerie quickness into the huge tufts of grass.

"Fuck," I cursed, glancing between Cloud and the stalking idiot gunblader.

"I'll stay with him," the Heartless volunteered.

"You sure?" I asked, arching a brow. After all, it wasn't every day the Heartless volunteered to do nothin'. Especially nothin' that was potentially hazardous to his continued existence. Leon ranked up there with the top ten things that could easily fucking kill him.

"He doesn't have his gunblade on him," the Heartless' voice reassured me. "That, and I'm pretty fast going two-dimensional if he feels like pounding my face in. I'll keep tabs on him and make certain he can find his way back once he calms down." Turning his aquamarine eyes away from me and focusing on where the man had tromped off to, he sighed quietly. "I want to observe him for awhile. I think I might have an inkling as to what's occurring in his mind. I'd like to verify my theories. Wonderland has a strong depreciating effect on the mind; it seems to attack each person individually. According to the Cheshire Cat, it focuses on a being's worst fears and its darkest secrets."

I narrowed my eyes slightly. "Which is why Cloud's goin' batty the way he is. He's actually kinda scared of losing himself again and confusin' himself for Zack. So Wonderland's bringin' all things Zack out in his brain and givin' him that personality."

"That's my suspicion," the Heartless affirmed. "Like how you're afraid of letting depression affect you. You're terrified of allowing your past to influence your current actions negatively."

"Hey, brat, no psychoanalyzing me," I snorted. "Go chase Crazy Bastard Leonheart, will ya?"

The Heartless' head bobbled, his antennae waggling. "Certainly."

As he took off after the crazy fucker, I shook my head. Maybe Wonderland was affecting the Heartless too – that certainly hadn't sounded like the kid in the Shadow I'm used to hearing. Sure it was the same voice and all, but the speech structure was totally off.

With a grunt and a decision to ponder that later, I turned to face Cloud.

"Need some help?" I offered, extending my hand to him as he slowly and stiffly got to his knees.

"Thanks," he answered, grimacing as he curled his fingers around my wrist and staggered to his feet. Bending over slightly, he numbly adjusted his package and winced in pain, his pale brows furrowing. "That hurt," he whimpered a moment later.

"Sure looked like it," I replied. "So… eh…." I hesitated, a frown creasing my face.

"I thought you knew my name by now, Cid. It's me." A slightly pinched yet still bright grin took his lips.

"Right. Zack. What the fuck was that all about?"

A shrug moved his shoulders as he held his hands up in defeat. "Heck if I know. All I know is that poor kid I've been looking after for so long as really upset. Guy needs someone to look after him and help him out, you know? He needs a good friend to protect him." A slightly wistful look crossed his face, his head drooping slightly. "I'm not going to leave him when he needs me the most. I've always been there to protect him. I promised him I wouldn't leave him."

"So you decided ta come on out and pound the ever-livid shit outta Leon? He's gonna pissy all damned day for that, you know."

"I don't particularly care. That guy has the personality of fungus to begin with, it seems," the guy said with a shrug and a snide grin, his Mako eyes glittering. "Really, does he do much beside fight, glare and grunt?"

I narrowed my eyes slightly. "Listen up, brat-"

"I'm not leaving Cloud to him," he cleanly interrupted, shaking his head slowly and narrowing those bright eyes that never belonged to the spirit speaking. "I promised Cloud I'd always be with him. I promised I'd protect him. And that's just what I'm going to do."

Rubbing my temple with my left hand's fingers even as I slacked my grip on my spear, I huffed mightily. "What the hell happened to make you wanna pick a fight with the guy? I don't think he'd actually hurt Cloud."

"That's not what Cloud's lead me to believe," the man before me snorted. "He's terrified of him. And the fact that the guy lead him out here so he could try and rape him doesn't much help his trust in the fellow."

That immediately drew my hand away from my head. My eyes widened as I found myself staring at the blond in front of me with complete disbelief, my jaw sagging wide open. "What the fuck?" I breathed. "Leon wouldn't… he'd never…!"

"Oh, he would and he did. And he would have succeeded. Cloud froze. He couldn't fight back; apparently, Cloud's terrified of hurting this guy. Must hold him in pretty high regard if he won't beat him down. So he cried for help, and I answered." Turning his face, glaring in the direction our companions had stormed off towards, he snorted softly. Cloud's gentle voice dripped unnaturally with hateful acid. "I'd rather Cloud not be subjected to that guy again. Next time, I won't stop until he's dead."

I couldn't bring myself to respond.

"So, what say you to ditching this place, Cid? You and me. And Cloud, of course, wherever he's hiding." As he swung back towards me, his eyes closed in bright crescents and his mouth twisted in a merry grin that didn't fit the blond's face at all. "We'd make a hell of a team, don't'cha think?"

A sigh rattled my lungs. "You want to abandon them?"

"That bastard and the little ant thing? Well, if the ant guy can catch up, he can certainly come along. I don't have anything against him." A cheerful wink of an eye with brightly glowing Mako accompanied a playful grin as he chuckled. "He's got some pretty good techniques with that knife of his. Maybe he'll grow up to be a heck of a sword-slinger someday. Kind of like Cloud."

"Don't bet on it," I huffed. "I don't feel very good 'bout leavin' Leon behind."

"Well, I do. Wait for him if you will. I'm heading off."

"You don't even know what our goal is, ya daft fuckhead!" I snapped, my eyes instantly narrowed.

"And that's why you should come with me and Cloud! C'mon, Cid," he whined, his voice almost pitched to the same aggravating levels Shera's would reach when she begged me to let her spend the last of my month's Gil on a new dress and a saucepan she had no need for.

Big difference was that Shera's whine would work. Cloud's voice whining grated on my nerves.

Still, couldn't let the twerp go marching off to his own death, getting himself all lost and twisted in Wonderland for all time. He'd need some damned help to reach the gummi.

If the gummi was even waiting for us.

And if we could ever find it.

I sighed quietly, turning away to face the direction our impromptu campground resided in. I really wished I knew exactly what was happening to each of us.

Was Wonderland trying desperately to rip us apart?

Nah, not Wonderland. If nothing else, it'd be the darkness that'd infested it.

Maybe that's what was happening.

After all, we're a threat to it. While we ain't no Keyblade Masters here to shut doors and shit, we're here to eradicate as many of those puke Heartless as we can, get the Heartless incarnation of this Jabberwock thing smashed, and make it possible for the girl whose mind dreamt this Wonderland to fight her own insanity and perhaps even win against it.

We were here to expel the Heartless from their conquered world of twisted misery.

I bet the darkness that drives 'em was trying to stop us. And driving us apart was the easiest way to do it.

Well, come what may, I couldn't let the spiky-haired moron go marching off to his demise. He'd need some help. A quick wish for Leon to be capable of handling whatever came his way was whispered to the putrid air before I started walking. "Let's get back to camp. You need your damned weapon, don't'cha?" I growled.

"Righty-O!" he professed, punching the air once with excitement before jogging to my side. Clamping a hand down on my shoulder, his smile firm and bright as he winked gleefully, he chuckled. "I knew you'd come around, Cid."

"First batch of Metaessence we find, Zack, you're usin'," I grunted even as I discretely shrugged his hand away. "You look like a fuckin' grape from that ass-pounding you got."

"Ha. You should've seen the other guy."

"I did. He looked a helluva lot better than you," I retorted.

"Oh, touché!" he replied with a wry smirk.

Looking up at the sky as we reached camp and the blond shuffled off to grab his sword and once again marvel at its complexities, I sighed quietly. "Hey, Cat. If you're listenin' to me from wherever you're stashed, keep an eye on those other two, will ya? We're all gonna need a bit of guidance. Especially if you're wantin' us to have a chance against that Jabberwock that's destroyin' your world – we'll need all of us there ta face it."

"Cid, let's go!"

I grit my teeth.

Next moment, I was spitting the remains of my twig onto the ground.

"Dagnabbit, fuckin' splinters!"

_-tbc-_

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Review replies:

Angl: Well, to answer what Leon's losing (or as we might as well say, has lost) our resident Heartless will be doing some exposition soon enough. After all, poor kid has more than just his memories swimming in his skull. Let's hear it for CoM! Huzzah, making him more screwy than he initially was! And we can't exactly write Zack off completely. Let's simply say that there's a _lot_ more Wonderland to cover, and Metaessence isn't easy to find near the end of the game. (shudder) At least not in sufficient quantities. The fic'll reflect that. (gag gag die freaking Nightmare mode) Don't mind my flailing. I just experienced a few hours of gaming brought to a horrible end, and not by falling into an errant pool of lava either. Craptastic super-hard mode and its freaking lack of regeneration of Willpower. Crap. Pardon my senseless blathering (though those of you who've played 'Alice' know exactly what I'm talking about). Anyway, thanks for reviewing and hope you like the new chapter!

Manders1953: Nomura's thinking "I make things pretty and people like my sketches. Cloud is young in Crisis Core. Doodles are cool." I think. (laughs) Seriously, his first concept drawings of Squall? Holy smokes. He was impossible to recognize as being a male. Anyway, as for why Leon's always calling Cloud pathetic, that's an easy enough thing to answer. The Heartless will be expositioning about it in his chapter. Let's simply say that I'm _not_ making Leon asstardishly out of character – he's degrading into that nasty part in all of us that's concerned with our own wellbeing and our own awesomeness and cares not about anyone else in the entire freaking universe. Check out what constitutes the human psychological makeup. Superego, Ego, and… what Leon's entire personality is becoming. Neh heh heh. Or wait for the exposition. (grin) Thanks for taking the time to review and ask questions – I promise they'll be answered in the next two chapters. If you're still confused, then ask away and I'll explain in excruciating detail. (li'l bow) I'm here to accommodate, m'dear.

scarlettHuntress: (lmao) Well, if it weren't for the plot, the story wouldn't exist in the first place! Sheesh. Glad you enjoyed the kissing scene. (snigger) And thanks for reviewing!

Li the Twilight Knight: Ah, so no concern for Sora until this point – I guess I can understand that. He had to go into the freakiest of old-timers' Disney movies to get stared at with wide and guffawing eyes. (laughs, hangs head) Heh heh. As for Crisis Core, I'm patient. And I'm a Squally-whore, so I'm not overly concerned. But that's me. (cuddles FF8 like a desperate person) I'll pro'lly wiki it later instead of actually playing Crisis Core. :P And Leon? Insane? Ha! We've yet to really get there. (manic snigger)

DarkStarPhoenix: bn……………gvvg, fg777777777 Sorry 'bout that. My kitty typed the first part of my reply. Anyway, as to what Leon's losing, Exposition!Heartless will reveal soon enough. Mwe heh heh. As for his stubborn tendencies, we'll have to see. I don't know – these chapters write themselves, so I honestly have no freaking clue. Glad you like the chapter, and hang in there at school! (high five)

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(takes a moment to thank her kitten for posing for a new pic she's drawing before tossing the Ansem plushie across the room) Seiki! Kill! (cackles as kitty-boy pounces the plushie even as it squeals 'SUBMIT!') 


	38. Psychoanalyzing

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 38  
The Heartless – Psychoanalyzing

To say I was looking forward to catching up with 'Crazy Bastard Leonheart' as Cid had so appropriately labeled our scar-faced traveling companion would be to lie through my proverbial teeth.

All that raced through my head as I shuffled through the huge variants of undergrowth that surrounded me on the overgrown forest's floor was that I was marching right into the greatest mistake of my life. Terror thundered through my rounded head with every step I took. Whatever bravery had filled my stooped being those scant minutes past when I had confirmed to Cid with cocky smugness that I would have no problem surviving an encounter with the emotionally unsettled warrior had long since fled, whatever strange personality that resides in this frame with me retreating to ponder what it was he wanted to ponder and leaving me staring with fear and trepidation down a path I was now acutely terrified to follow.

I was beginning to doubt that the Cat's information was complete. The creature had informed us in his rumbling voice that battle damage was wounding our psyches, destroying our minds.

I suspect that was only one of many contributing factors.

Indeed, I had not taken a single hint of physical damage since arriving in Wonderland. My innate fear of destruction saved me from such a fate.

Whereas my brethren would mindlessly throw themselves towards the glow and warmth of a heart with all concern for their wellbeing tossed to the wind by their overriding desire to clasp that which they lack to their empty breasts, I remained distinctly segregated from them with my lack of brainless devotion to that drive. I still resisted that pull, still had the ability to assess the danger that was inherit in every action that I would take to touch that source of unending warmth and comfort. I still respected those who maintained their tenuous hold on their hearts and refused to remove their most precious treasure from them to momentarily fulfill my lust for that throb to exist for me once again. I still had no longing to create more of my damned race.

I suppose that makes me significantly more 'human' than everyone I would be associated with. Part of my depreciated mind happily thanked whatever deity would listen to me.

But regardless of my desires or lack thereof, I had struggled through battle but had successfully maintained myself free of nicks and scratches. However, I could still suspect that Wonderland was taking its toll on me as well.

After all, there used to be a firm segregation between the two voices that tromp around in my head. There used to be a solid wall separating the two sides of the picture I drew for the pretty lady in pink back at the fortification.

While I had no true idea as to which one of those two beings I could associate with myself was the true me, which one had true possession of the darkness-warped and twisted body I now resided in, I at least knew that they were two separate persons who oddly inhabited the same boneless Shadow.

One was a scientist, an apprentice to one even greater than himself. One who sought lost truths and missing memories, who worked with exceptional dedication to obtain complete understanding of all that surrounded him. One who was devastated by experimentations preformed, who was driven mad by the touch of darkness upon his heart and his addled mind. One whose connection with the darkness, whose affinity for the Heartless drove him to do the unspeakable, harnessing their power for himself.

The other was a boy, a lonely child trapped on a tiny world of islands where nothing new could stimulate his depreciating imagination. One who sought adventure and excitement, who worked with unbreakable devotion towards the goal of breaking free of his paradise prison. One who was drawn by the promise of escape lent by an opened door, who was driven mad by the touch of darkness upon his heart and his addled mind. One whose connection with the darkness, whose affinity for the Heartless drove him to do the unspeakable, harnessing their power for himself.

Huh. Not really so very different when analyzed.

Still, at one time I could identify them as two definite, segregated persons. One was a tall man with flowing silver hair and cool eyes that looked at the world with indifference. The other was a boy with flowing silver hair and cool eyes that looked at the world with scorn. One lived in a great fortification, the other upon an island. One was accompanied by other young scientists working under the tutoring of a great wise man, the other was accompanied by other children who played under the summer sun.

Now their distinct personalities were overlapping.

The boy's lust for adventure still flitted about in my mind. I'd like to think it was the boy's longing for continued life that drove me to take things a touch more cautiously than I suspected the older individual who resided within me would do. But lately, the distinct analytical proceedings of the scientist have been coming forward with surprising regularity.

I was chasing Leon not just for my concern over his continued safety and reuniting the group (both spirits in my body recognized that there is indeed strength in numbers), but also because I wanted to verify that what I suspected was occurring in his twisting mind was actually true.

I paused my rapid run, coming to a sudden stop as I stared at the forest floor. My brain quickly drew itself away from its internal observations of my own twisting persona to focus instead on what my eyes were beholding.

The shuffling footsteps I'd been following, those dragging marks left by boots that hurried without care away from the clearing where the confrontation with Cloud had taken place, were changing their path. Instead of plowing even deeper into the rose and fungus infested forest, they were making a broad turn to skim along the southern face of a tall wall of grass.

Following while scratching at my proverbial chin with clawed fingertips, I hobbled along after the clear markers my subject had left me. Lifting my gaze when the path straightened once more, I gulped audibly.

He was heading back to camp.

"Crap!" I exclaimed, worry leaping to my throat.

What if Cid and Cloud had already returned? I'd yet to even have the opportunity to speak with the man! What if he was still as feral as he'd been at the end of his altercation with Cloud? What if he decided to take them on?

At the camp, he'd have access to his gunblade.

Shuddering violently and offering a small, internalized prayer for everything to be alright, I collapsed to two-dimensions and fled as swiftly as any Shadow could over the rough terrain. I knew now where he was heading – there was no reason for me to be upright in the third dimension to view where his footsteps were leading me.

My journey was surprisingly short. I'd burst into the small clearing we'd used as our nightly area of peaceful restitute from the monstrous inhabitants of Alice's imagined forest in next to no time.

I could almost hear my lost heart pounding in my nonexistent ears as I leapt from the second into the third dimension, my feet contacting the top of the ground instead of becoming one with it again. Looking wildly left and right, my antennae whipping around my head with enough force to almost throw me from my stance, I held my claws to my sides and prepared to take whatever actions might be necessary.

As silence was slowly filtered away with the remote buzzing of insect wings and lapping of slowly moving water upon the muddied shore, I let my panic slide away. The clearing was incredibly peaceful.

A second spent observing it told me why.

The areas where Cloud and Cid had slept were cleared of their weapons, footprints aimlessly milling around before milling almost aimlessly off into the thickest patches of hard dirt that existed. That soil effectively hid their direction, allowing the pair a clean getaway.

They'd already taken their weapons and escaped.

I would have huffed if I'd had nostrils. They'd abandoned us.

It wasn't as if I could begin to blame them, though. With what I'd seen about to traverse between Leon and Cloud, I would have run also. I would have wanted to keep Cloud as far as possible from the gunblade wielder as I could until what was so addled in his mind could be repaired.

Needless to say, he needed the Metaessence we'd been stumbling across throughout our traipsing across Wonderland more than any of us.

He'd gotten the least owing to his reluctance to utilize it whenever Cloud was around, instead wasting it on the blond man who was decidedly more in his right mind than he was.

And as far as things were going, I wasn't certain if any amount of Metaessence would be able to help him much now.

Glancing around the small encampment we'd established, I finally managed to find Leon. The way I'd found him was not at all what I was expecting.

I was expecting fists to my head, boots to my face. When I'd discovered that his path was taking him back to camp, I'd been preparing myself for a fire spell to my antennae or perhaps a gunblade to my body. I'd been preparing to meet with the wild beast we'd been watching the warrior degrade into, to be splattered across the forest floor.

I hadn't been expecting to see him seated with his back to a tall stalk of grass, his legs folded to his chest, his arms wrapped around his shins, his face hidden by the torn leather of the pants that still remained around his knees and his shoulders shaking intermittently with repressed sobs.

Crap.

Scratching the back of my head with twitching claws, I cautiously approached. This wasn't at all what I was preparing myself to deal with.

He didn't bother raising his head as I shuffled to his side, keeping his face hidden by his long brown bangs and his leather-clad knees. I faintly heard a miserable sniff leak from his shaken form.

"Elle… I'm all alone again," he whimpered in a voice so soft I had to strain to catch his words.

I gulped.

Not at _all_ what I was expecting.

Seating myself at his side, I carefully laid a hand on one broad shoulder. "Leon," I muttered, giving the bruised flesh under my claws a precautionary squeeze to get his attention.

He astutely ignored me.

Clearing my throat even as I focused my gaze on where his face would appear should he choose to lift his head, I lifted my wavering tone a touch in volume, trying to assert more confidence than was running through my quivering body into my statements. "Leon, look at me."

"I can't find anyone, Big Sis," he sniffed instead of obeying. "I can't even find you."

"Leon!" I bit, something inside of me flaring with suppressed anger.

Alright, so I don't like to ignored. Both the boy and the scientist seem to share that trait as well.

He lifted his head a touch.

If I'd had a heart, it probably would have shattered.

Over the course of time, I'd gotten quite used to two different Leons.

The first, the one I'd met at the onset of our journey when he was the gallant and confident leader, had a presence likened to that of a storybook hero. A straight stance, a purposeful stride, a set jaw and a stern face. An emotionless enigma who took everything the world would deal him with a like expression – one of bland disinterest. A man whose eyes were the only window to his soul and his true feelings, their coloration instantly betraying what danced over his heart. The soft blue of comfort and something that might boarder on joy. The blue and gray mix of uncaring, of morose traipsing through daily life. The storm clouds of misery. The silver of rage. The soft haze of dismal recollection. The cyan of almost giddy joy, instantly blinked away into the blue and gray that everyone expected when he noticed he had observers. The soft flicker of almost white coloration around the bottomless black of his pupils that would betray annoyance. The first Leon was a hero straight from legend, unknown and unreadable save for having the universe's most expressive eyes; eyes that would tell the tale of the entirety of time's run if one had the knowledge necessary to decipher their story.

The second Leon, the one who'd stepped free in Wonderland, was the lion who'd finally burst free of his constraining cage. It was the beast who shook its mane angrily at the world that would have incased it in the storybook hero, the great cat who lusted to sink its fangs into every last vestige of ethical upbringing that would have kept it shackled and confined to the lowly statute of humanity. It was the animal barely glimpsed upon when those eyes of the legend had faded to a solid gray, barely visible in the white stain that would race like lightening across the storm-flooded sky, barely allowed to release its roar of hate and unending pure rage when those eyes shined as silver as the polished metal of the man's pendent. This Leon needed no reading – it was an unpredictable lion who would rip the throat out of any who stood still long enough to try and read its eyes, who communicated no with words and motions and soft stares with changing colors but with roars and bristling mane and unsheathed claws and bared fangs. It was the untamed beast every person secretly wishes they could be, the uncontrollable and untouchable animal no chain could hold and no bars could trap, that which could do whatever its heart desired and obtain whatever its dreams bequeathed upon it.

The man I looked at when he raised his eyes showed me eyes that were shattered. Eyes that were broken. Clouds of gray with no lightening, with no promise of rain to lighten their color and let the sky shine through, with no breeze on the horizon to stir them into motion. Eyes that had no tears to shed, no method to release the unending depth of sadness that plagued them.

The lion was broken, tethered to its cage's interior, muzzled and shaved with its claws permanently sheathed and its fangs removed. It was laying still, staring remorsefully at the world that had denied it its freedom, watching as the empty plains beyond its bars beckoned to it and lamented the lack of huge paws thundering over their expanses. It lay trapped by its own sadness, its own lack of spirit and determination to chew once more through those bars, trapped by a cage of its own imagining.

"Leon," I tried again, internally wincing as those eyes set their destitute and shattered gaze on me.

"He left. Just like everyone else."

Grumbling quietly, I rose to my feet and stood before him. All fear of him leaked from my body even as I dared to place my hands on both of his shoulders, giving him one small shake. "Because of what you tried to do, Leon. Because of what you've done."

"I…" he began before casting his gaze to the dirt at his side.

Sighing, I stooped a touch to put my face directly in his line of sight again. Once I'd garnered his attention again, I nodded slightly, my antennae bobbling. "You had no control over it, did you?"

"I… wanted him," he finally softly confessed, the lion closing its eyes in defeat and breathing its soft lamentation through its sagging muzzle. "I wanted him. He denied me – it angered me. I was going to show him how I felt, whether or not he wanted to know. I… didn't care anymore."

I remained silent as he whimpered his confession, pondering all he was saying. Part of me was grinning in complete satisfaction, merrily professing that my theories had just been proven correct. Part of me wanted the part of me that was dancing with happy triumph to manifest itself so I could smack the ever-livid crap out of it.

"What's wrong with me?" he finally sniffed, those tear-laden eyelashes parting to allow the misery-stained sky to stare at me once more.

"Wonderland's what's wrong with you, Leon," I began softly, my voice as quiet and comforting as I could make it, speaking as if trying to comfort a confused child. "It's what's wrong with all of us. Everything about this land's corrupted and decaying – the longer we remain here, the more we're affected by it. The more damage a person takes, the more accelerated that persons degeneration becomes. You've taken a lot of battle damage lately, Leon."

He shivered slightly, glaring at his knees.

Releasing one shoulder, I dared perhaps the most suicidal move I've ever accomplished in my insignificant life – I grabbed his chin and forced him to look up at me. "Listen to me, Leon," I huffed. "It's not just you. You're just most advanced among us because you haven't used any Metaessence to restore your psyche. First batch we reach, you're using. Understand?"

His lips screwed up in a slight frown. "But what's wrong-"

"Id," I cleanly interrupted.

"'It'?"

"No, not 'it.' 'Id.'" Seeing the clear confusion in his eyes, I let a sigh leak past my lips and hung my head. "You don't understand, do you?"

"Been awhile since I studied psychology at Garden," he bitterly snorted.

"Then allow me to refresh your memory," I began. "Id is the base of human personality. It's your longings, your desires and your impulses. It's that part of you that knows exactly what it wants and won't stop until it's fulfilled that need. It's the seething cauldron of desire that boils at the bottom of all of our spirits, steaming in our subconscious and driving us by impulse and lust to accomplish all we do. It's what drives children to throw tantrums for what they want, what drives people to do things that would seem contrary to their upbringing or their known personas to gain a goal."

Frowning faintly, Leon glanced up towards me once more, his focus removed from his knees.

"I suspect that the more time you spend in Wonderland, the more your Ego erodes. Ego is what monitors and mediates the Id to the desires and specifications set forth by the Superego, that which is instilled in you by the sociological upbringing you've had and the morals and ethics you've entailed into your personality through your development." Releasing his chin, I pushed a single clawed finger to the air, emphasizing the importance of my lecture as I spilled my theories out upon the floor for approval. "The effect of Wonderland upon your Ego is apparent in the way you've been behaving – your behavior is not at all tempered by the reactions shown to you by those surrounding you. Even in the absence of Superego, the monitoring force of Ego would temper the behaviors emoted by Id, if only to wait until a more opportune moment for the fantasies of Id to be realized with less detrimental effect to your own person. The effects of Wonderland on the Superego you have developed are something I most unfortunately can not determine-"

He waved his hand at me, cutting me cleanly off. "I believe I understand," he quietly stated. "So… my innermost desires are what drove Cloud away?"

The part of me that wasn't parading with banners celebrating the correct conclusions of his studies whimpered at the expression on the fallen warrior's face. The down-turned lips, the soft sniffs through the nose, the glistening of light glittering on tears that had yet to drip from sodden lashes, the devastated quality of soft gray eyes that almost poured misery into the already grim surroundings pounded over me like waves on the surf.

Clearing my throat, I lightly laid my hand once more on his shoulders. "No. The way you were going about expressing those desires is what drove him away. I wouldn't say those desires themselves are responsible for his rejection."

I would have smiled if I'd had a mouth when I saw the gray of those eyes fade just a touch, the brilliant blue sky I knew to exist behind those heavy storm clouds flickering through just a touch.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Leon. They didn't leave forever. They just put some distance between us so Cloud can calm down and return to being Cloud again."

"So, genius, what's going on with him?" Leon grunted as he suddenly got to his feet, easily shaking himself free of my grip and stalking away to fetch his stained gunblade. "He keeps referring to himself in third person."

"I have my theories about that as well," I happily professed as I trotted to his side. "According to Cid-"

"What the fuck is that?" he interrupted, pointing with the tip of his heavy weapon to the sky.

Allowing my annoyance with being interrupted wash over me, I instead turned my attention to where he was pointing.

"If I were to venture a guess, I'd say it's a smoke signal," I muttered as I stared at the sky. "But that's the weirdest smoke signal I've ever seen, if I'm correct."

"I'd like to meet the guy who can make a smoke signal arrow pointing directly at us," he snorted in disbelief.

The next moment I was gulping down terror and barreling towards cover.

The arrow in the sky had indeed been pointing directly at us.

Something had followed it to us.

The warrior roared as he swung his gunblade, the explosive blast of him triggering that weapon roaring across the land, an unearthly screech of pain and the thick splattering of hot blood accompanying the huge sound the instrument in his hands had unleashed and the plume of black smoke that stained the atmosphere. Rolling to my feet I doubled back, my quickly found butcher knife in my hand as I charged back to assist him.

I yelped as I felt giant claws wrap around my body, hoisting me effortlessly off the ground. A startled roar at my side drew my attention – Leon had been grabbed by what appeared to be an enormous eagle's talons by the back of his shirt.

The next moment, whatever constituted the insides of a Shadow Heartless went rushing to my feet as we were hoisted into the air by powerfully flapping wings.

Looking wildly at our captor, I stared in complete disbelief.

I'd seen talking cards, Heartless in every form imaginable, crocodiles the size of ships and every other assortment of monsters most people can imagine – but this was the first time I'd ever come eye to eye with a griffon.

The eagle-headed beast, its lion's rear paws batting at the air as if seeking purchase on the wispy breezes that flowed around us while its giant feathered wings beat against the air, let loose a horribly loud piercing shriek as it flew high into the sky.

Both Leon and I let our horror known in cursing screams as we flew into a swirling cloud of gaseous green smoke and our visions simultaneously darkened.

_-tbc-_  


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Woah! (takes a moment to dodge all the Leon-hate that's been hurled her way before poking her head out from behind a protective wall of Diet Coke cans and snot-rags) Eh heh heh… um… er… (whimpers, ducks under her Stitch pillow to hide for the rest of eternity from raving slobbering fans who're out for her blood)

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Review replies:

Manders1953: Neh heh heh. I dug myself a literary grave with that rather controversial last chapter, didn't I? (sheepishly rubs her head) I'm just taking things one pseudo-logical step at a time, given the dementia that's overtaking Leon. Didn't realize I was ripping open that large of a can of worms. Anyway, stuff will be getting better… hopefully soon. I'm trying to move Wonderland along as quickly as I can, actually! After all, I can't wait to get them to the next place that's in store for them. I'm in the mood for massive hot tub smut, and right now there's no way my pretty bishies will cooperate. (throws spent snot rags at them) Glad you're getting it all – and as stated, any questions can and will be happily answered! As for Squally and his gender issues, knew that. (cackles) Tis why I professed as soon as I booted Xenosaga III "Why Shion! You finally graduated from the Leonheart Beauty Institute, didn't you?" Dude, check out her skank pants and her fur-collared jacket with heavy eyeliner and accessories. Squall would be so proud. And Cloud being as effeminate as ever makes me cackle like a depraved crack-whore. (wild grin)

Li the Twilight Knight: Well, of course Zack to the rescue! There's nothing that boy can't do, after all! Hell yeah! Give him a Buster Sword to twirl and a girl to hang off his arm, and he'll… wait. Review replies, not Zack writing. (little laugh) Leon needs massive help. Everyone does realize that – however, I think that Cloud being Zack is almost as freaky. (nods vigorously) Thanks for reviewing, and best of luck pounding out the last of your computer problems! (hands over the 'mallet of misbehaving mechanical malignant malice adjusting')

Angl: Ah, it all made perfect sense. BTW, you did go explore the Honey Bee Inn on the first disk, right? Mwa ha ha! Anyway. Sorry, but that is my favorite part of the entire silly game. Back to review replying… yeah, 'American McGee's Alice' is a great game. I play it at night with all the lights off and the sound effects cranked – hearing the screams and insane laughter of tortured children coupled with the banshee wails of ghostly critters and the splattering of card blood and body chunks makes me shudder. I like scaring the crap out of myself for some odd reason. (merry grin) And as for the would-be rapist getting his… oh, just wait. Just freaking wait. (slow nod, backs away before she spews exposition all over the screen)

scarlettHuntress: Ack! Eh heh heh… I didn't mean to make you hate poor li'l Leon. It's no his fault! Entirely. Well, eh… how's this update? No violent rapist Leon! Ha ha! (triumphant pose)

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(tosses her spent Kleenex at the Ansem plushie) Say 'submit,' you disobedient twerp. (glowers as it remains silent and mocks her) Harrumph. And here I needed you to help – next up's a Sora chapter, for crying out loud. (cries in her Theraflu even as 'Zack' merrily tries to get the clown-shoe wearing pipsqueak to switch places with him, thinking that the _Cygnus_ would be better than Wonderland any day) 


	39. Dinner

Holy smokes, let's all gasp and die. I actually got around to finishing this blasted chapter. Ha ha! Take that, Sora! (boots him in the arse) Way to get the story back in motion! Sorry it took so long for a single paltry chapter, but hey… beggers can't be choosers, especially in the 'time,' 'motivation' and 'brains' department in my ever so speshul kase. (typo'd on purpose, BTW. Don't lecture me about it. My brain hurts.) 

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha. 

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that. 

_ -BEGIN FIC- _

Chapter 39  
The Keyblade Master – Dinner 

It came to be that Hans Reinhardt excused himself from the company of Kate, Alex and me so that he might change for dinner. Left alone in the vast control room, I shuffled from foot to foot as I stood with the Palomino crew members. Stuffing my hands into my coveralls' pockets, I sighed softly. "I wonder how Donald, Goofy and Jiminy are doing." 

Failing to have removed her hand from my shoulder, Kate gave it a slight squeeze before casting me a kind smile. "I'm certain your friends are fine." 

"That Maximilian is a monster, though," I gruffly snorted before glaring through the vast window that separated us from the huge vacuum of space and the enormous swirling black hole that resided within it. "I just worry about them being with that thing." 

"Vincent would warn us if there's any danger," Kate reassured me. 

"With the ESP that Kate and Vincent share, there's nothing that can occur without either of their knowledge to either party," Alex confirmed with a nod. 

"ESP? With a robot?" I marveled. "Cool!" 

"It was originally developed for Project Black Hole," Dr. McCrae explained with a smile. "Robots such as Vincent were sent in space probes into black holes and relayed what information they could to their human counterparts before they were disintegrated." 

Made perfect sense. But talk about a waste of a good robot! Sheesh. "Sounds like a beast of a project," I muttered, kicking a sneaker-bearing toe against the ground. 

"Oh, it was," Kate said. "It's been discontinued for quite some time. However, this close to a black hole, it seems just that much more recent and real." 

Our attentions were drawn away from one another and the monstrous black hole we'd been observing when a contingency of four maroon sentry robots approached us, guns lowered. "What now?" I questioned even as I rubbed the back of my head, fighting to keep Ultima Weapon down at the moment. 

Those robots made me more than a little jittery, I must say. 

"Perhaps they're here to escort us to dinner," Alex observed. "I don't believe they're going to cause any trouble. Come, let's go." 

Reaching over, I took Kate's hand and followed the graying scientist as he approached the guard squad. 

Sure enough, their purpose was to lead us off towards the dining room we were supposedly going to have dinner in. As soon as we'd arrived, the robotic forces turned on their heels and ambled right back out, leaving us to our own devices. 

I whistled as I looked around – the grandeur of the room was far beyond anything I'd ever seen on Destiny Islands, or anywhere I'd traveled to in recent days. It was huge, sprawling before yet another giant window that gave an astounding view of the black hole and its swirling vortex of the event horizon. A long table had at least ten chairs set around it – enough so that each of us got a seat, including those persons who'd gone for parts with that frightening Maximilian robot. Soft light poured from golden chandeliers and brushed against hard flawlessly cut wood and burgundy rug, glittering on a delicately woven metal basket holding lush red apples and the golden rims on crystal goblets filled with red liquid I suspected strongly to be wine. 

My heart nearly leapt out of my throat as I heard a loud voice profess, "Gawrsh! Sure is fancy!" 

"Goofy!" I gasped even as I turned sharply on my heel, staring at the gathering that'd approached from behind without my taking notice of them. "When did you get here?" 

"Just a couple minutes ago," Donald confirmed even as Goofy whistled to himself and began to errantly wander. "Our trip wasn't as productive as I was hoping." 

"No gummi parts, eh?" I sighed, lowering my gaze to stare at the stark contrast between my bright yellow sneakers and the deeply colored floor. 

"Nope! Wasn't a gummi part to be seen," Goofy interjected as he picked up a plate and stared at his own reflection in it. 

"But we did find spare parts for a space probe that we might be able to rig onto the gummi ship," a small voice quipped from Donald's pocket. 

Kate turned to me with a smile splayed across her lips. "Well, then your trip wasn't nearly so unproductive. At least you have something to work with." 

"If you need help," the young man named Charlie said as he stepped into the room with Dan at his heels, "I'll be willing to lend some aid. Donald here was saying you don't have any tools to work normal steel onboard your ship. The Palomino's well equipped for simple emergencies such as the one you're facing." 

"Wow, thanks a lot," I stated, my voice hushed in reverence. "We really appreciate it." 

"No problem. It'd be best if none of us remain here any longer than necessary," Mr. Holland stated as he crossed his arms over his chest, looking uneasily out of the window that gave us a glorious look at the black hole hovering ominously close to the Cygnus. 

"Did something happen?" I quipped, arching a brow and approaching the gathering that had returned from wherever Maximilian had taken them, my questioning gaze focused on the raven-haired leader of the Palomino's crew. 

Glancing quickly over his shoulder as the set of doors we'd all entered the room in whooshed open once more, Dan shrugged casually before giving my shoulder a light pat. "I'll tell you all later." 

"Ah, you have arrived. I feared my sentries would be unable to locate you in adequate time for you to accept my invitation," the venerable Hans Reinhardt calmly said as he entered the chamber, his dark crimson garments hanging nicely from his lank frame, the silver cross that rested at the cleft of his neck glittering in the light that poured from the golden chandeliers above. "I am so happy that my fears were unfounded." 

"Thank you for the invitation," Harry quickly answered, a smile lifting his cheeks. 

"You are most welcome. Do recall, you are my guests. It would be most improper of me as your host to not attend to you to the greatest of my capabilities," the Doctor stated, his bushy brows rising slightly as he looked over us all. 

"Indeed," Dan Holland said with a nod. 

"But as your host, I am afraid I must make a few parameters clear. Curiosity might not simply lead to such a travesty as missing an invitation to dinner. Onboard my ship, there might be more severe repercussions to embracing such wanderlust and desire to investigate the enigmatic phenomena around you." 

I felt my eyes widen slightly as I regarded the graying man at the table's head. "What do you mean, Doctor?" I ventured, my voice tremulously breaking the unsettling silence that had fallen over the room with the termination of Hans Reinhardt's muttering. 

Glancing at me, his eyes glistening, he parted his pearly white teeth in a strange smirk. "A great many experiments are in progress aboard the Cygnus, gentlemen. Some of them dangerous. I suggest in the interest of your own safety, that there are no more unescorted excursions for the duration of your stay, agreed?" 

Arching a brow, Alex's face serious and failing to reflect the fear I knew was flying across my irises, he nodded and agreed readily, "Sure, sure." 

Dr. Reinhardt's lips curled with a satisfied smile that lifted the edges of his moustache. "Good. Please, sit down. Captain," he prompted, holding his hand out towards Mr. Holland. 

Without words, we all slid into open seats, my own being between Donald and Goofy and across from Kate and Alex. As Charlie seated himself beside Goofy and near Dan who took the station at the head of the table, Harry flopped down across from the youngest and most fiery of the Palomino's crew, leaving the chair directly opposite of Dan open for the Cygnus' captain. 

Settling ourselves in for a comfortable meal, I slowly lifted my mug. Sniffing the liquid inside, I felt my nose tingle and my eyes water slightly – it was definitely alcohol. Well, when in a foreign land… without further hesitation, I slurped thirstily at it. 

Mmm. Tasty. 

It was then that I turned my attention back to the Doctor, as he spoke calmly even while lifting his own goblet and sipping delicately at the dark liquid within. "Well, Mr. Booth, what's new on Earth?" 

Harry smiled lightly, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the table. "Well, I don't think it's changed very much since you left, doctor." 

Reinhardt's eyes glimmered, accepting the merry jibe. "Nothing much ever changes. Same news, different names. Still writing for the same paper?" he asked, to which Harry replied that he was. "Still on strike?" the Doctor fired a second later, earning a laugh from the stocky gentleman. I listened without much interest, instead letting my hand wander back to that glass of tasty wine. 

Donald reached over, slapping a feathered hand over my goblet even as I was attempting to draw it back to my lips for a second gulp. "Sora, slow down!" 

"Gawrsh, you think it's alright for him to be drinking wine?" 

"Oh, come on. I'm old enough!" I whined with as much dignity as I could muster, earning a little smile from Kate which plastered a hearty blush across my cheeks. I distinctly heard Charlie snickering into his glass. 

Before I could begin to justify myself and perhaps retort properly to the duck at my side, one of Doctor Reinhardt's black-robed robots shuffled in with a tray, swiftly followed by others similarly clad and laden. Atop that tray were steaming hot bowls of something that smelled absolutely delicious. Harry grinned my way even as my stomach audibly rumbled. 

"Ah! Fresh mushroom soup. Prepared from my own personal garden," Reinhardt stated even as he lifted his spoon and stirred the liquid within his bowl. 

I leaned over my own as it was slid before me, inhaling deeply and nearly letting the drool forming in my mouth drip from my lips. It smelled so good! 

Harry slowly and deliberately stirred his soup before affixing a quizzical gaze onto the Doctor, motives and questions burning in his dark irises that I couldn't begin to recognize. "I remember writing about the extensive agricultural station. Large enough to supply the needs of the entire crew, wasn't it Doctor?" he questioned, his voice bright and merry yet hard as steel under its fluffy exterior. 

A nonchalant smile turning his lips, the Doctor let his eyes drift slowly closed. "These days it's tiny; just enough for one person." 

Leaning back in his chair, Harry let a solid breath ooze from his lungs, exuding nothing but sheer disbelief. "Ah, naturally." 

"Our wine and our spare parts are vintage. I hope that's satisfactory," Doctor Reinhardt's voice stated, his tone sharp and commanding, demanding nothing but a confirmation of his hospitality's usefulness to his impromptu guests. 

"Eh, sure are!" Donald quickly quacked, lifting his own goblet of wine before pouring some into his bill and swallowing harshly. 

Nodding towards Donald, Dan Holland smiled faintly before turning his focus back to our host. "We've had to modify a few of the parts, but that shouldn't take long. We'll be ready to leave soon." 

"That's us, too," Goofy unnecessarily clarified. 

"Speak for yourself, Dan. I for one believe I have a great deal to learn from Dr. Reinhardt." 

Even as Donald, Goofy and myself focused disbelieving stares at the speaker of that statement, Reinhardt smiled at Alex and acknowledged the man's brave forthcoming with a nod and an almost humble utterance of thanks. 

Dan narrowed his eyes, his focus ripped away from the Doctor on the opposing end of the table from his own seat. "Our mission's finished, Alex," he sharply reminded. 

His very presence overriding the words of the Captain, Dr. Reinhardt slowly lifted himself out of his chair and made known his dominance over our small party. "A toast… to you and your companions, Dr. Durant, on the occasion of your visit to the Cygnus. Welcome aboard, Miss Kate. The only Earth people to know of my existence." Slowly lowering his glass, he smirked at me. "And of course, to you Sora, Donald and Goofy. The first persons ever to be encountered from alternate worlds." 

Even as I ducked my head to hide my burning cheeks, Alex Durant lifted his own wine glass to the Cygnus' commander. "And to you, sir, and your magnificent accomplishments." 

"Tonight, my friends, we stand on the brink of a feat unparalleled in space exploration. If the data on my returning probe ship matches my computerized calculations, I will travel where no man has dared to go," Reinhardt began, slowly walking towards the grand window that bathed us in the presence of space and the huge hole that punctured it. 

Alex's voice caught momentarily in his throat before he uttered, "Into the black hole?" 

I swallowed down a hearty ball of fear, gripping my glass tightly. As Donald's feathered palm slipped away from my goblet's mouth, I hastily lifted it and took a reassuring swallow of the steadily warming fluid. 

"In…" the Doctor began, pointing towards the giant rift in space with a skinny finger, "through… and beyond." 

I downed the rest of my glass as his voice ominously resonated through the chamber we dined in. My ears rang with the horrible silence that had settled across us all, the steady clanking of spoons digging in bowls for that delicious smelling mushroom soup I'd yet to sample coming to an awkward halt. 

Harry was the first to break through the seemingly impenetrable silence that muffled us all. "Why, that's crazy!" his shaking voice cracked. "Ha! Impossible!" 

Scoffing, Dr. Reinhardt shook his head. "The word 'impossible,' Mr. Booth, is only found in the dictionary of fools." 

As much as I found myself in agreement with that statement, I couldn't bring myself to add anything. Donald shivered at my side even as Goofy just breathed heavily, his eyes huge as he stared at the other people around the table. 

"Your probe ship has only gone to the event horizon, doctor, not into the black hole itself. How do you expect the Cygnus to escape being crushed by the force in there?" Dan growled, his voice hard and unrelenting. 

Surprisingly, Alex spoke in place of the Doctor. "I would assume Dr. Reinhardt has created an anti-gravitational force field capable of withstanding that stress." 

His smirk smug, Dr. Reinhardt offered a firm nod towards Dr. Durant. "Indeed. And I know you will say that one mistake in navigation can be fatal. But I know exactly what I'm doing. The course I have chosen will take the Cygnus through at its optimum angle of rotation. The vortex will cause us to move at incredible speed. And that angle will slingshot us through." 

"Holy mackerel, that sounds ludicrous!" I whimpered. 

"So, as I understand it, you want the Palomino to monitor your journey," Alex stated boldly, lifting his goblet to take a heavy draught from it. I grimaced as I mimicked him, my glass having been courteously refilled by one of Hans' black-robed robot servants. 

"That's right," Dr. Reinhardt confirmed. "I need you to go to another place and another time. A place where, if you're lucky, I have the possibility to find what we call 'the ultimate knowledge.'" He took a heavy draught of his wine even as the door to the dining room whooshed open and the huge barbarous looking Maximilian entered with a soft hum, levitating calmly to its creator's side. Without concern, he directed his gaze to the robot, softly mouthing, "Yes, Maximilian?" 

Maximilian's helmet-like head turned slightly, the thrumming that emerged from its metal construct body amplifying in volume and increasing its rhythm as the light that poured from the red slit that I always thought of as the robot's eyes intensified significantly. Dr. Reinhardt simply nodded, his lips twisting with satisfaction as he stated, "The probe ship is about to dock. Continue your meal." 

I audibly sighed with relief as he rose from his seat and left with that threatening robot. Donald sagged into his seat beside me even as Goofy expressed his relief by picking up his bowl of cooling mushroom soup and swiftly drank it down. 

Following Goofy's lead, I began to hungrily spoon my dinner even as my brain sloshed curiously behind the front plane of my skull. I barely was able to focus as Charlie turned in his seat and huffed out, "Cuckoo as a Swiss clock." 

"What does your intuition tell you, Kate?" Dan questioned on the edge of my hearing. 

Kate's full lips pouted even as she lightly chewed on the bottom one, its protruding flesh poked by delicate white teeth. "That Dr. Reinhardt is walking a tightrope between genius and insanity." 

"I think the guy's nuts," Harry astutely snorted. 

Donald thumped his feathered fist solidly against the table. "I agree!" his ducky voice quacked. 

"I don't buy that," Alex muttered even as Goofy scratched his chin. 

"He may be suffering from acute sociomania derived from his time alone in space that's driven him to megalomania? I mean, my graces. Thinking to take on a black hole because some of his theories were correct," Jiminy's small voice called out even as the cricket poked his head out of the pocket he was occupying amongst Donald's conglomeration of storage pouches. 

"Well, whatever he is, he's an out-and-out liar," Harry huffed. "That tiny, little one-man garden of his is big enough to feed an army." 

"Nothing strange about that," Alex instantly interjected. "It purifies the air." 

Sitting up straight in his chair, Charlie's eyes grew wide as he stared at Alex Durant. Turning sharply to face Dan Holland, he lifted his hand to enunciate his thoughts. "Tell him about the funeral, Dan." Turning sharply to Alex, he snorted. "A robot funeral, Alex. It was almost human." 

Rolling his eyes in something akin to disdain, Alex rose from his seat and stood before the window to space, his arms loosely crossing over his chest as he looked down upon all of us. "Look, granted, 20 years out of contact with people has made this man a little eccentric, but you can't ask me to believe he's programmed his robots to feel emotions." 

Dan's eyes were hard and unbending as his bland lips pressed into a thin line. "I know what I saw, Alex. And we only have Reinhardt's word for what happened to his crew." 

"You don't think they abandoned ship like Dr. Reinhardt said they did, do you?" I mouthed, wondering vaguely why my voice sounded somewhat slurred. Groggily I lifted my goblet again and slurped more of the tasty red stuff out of it. 

Harry glanced towards me and shuddered. "All I know is that robot gardener was almost human too. Ha. He even walked with a limp." 

Donald looked with concern at the large engineer, his blue eyes shining. "You don't suppose…" he started before letting his statement drift off, his gaze ducking as he scratched the bottom of his chin and internally pondered what he was about to voice. 

"What spooks you about a malfunctioning robot, Harry?" Alex snorted. 

Harry arched a brow, his expression belaying the fact that he was offended by his crewmate's lack of concern for the supposed importance of his words. "I wasn't spooked, old buddy. I'm just tellin' you I had a gut feelin' that… that I was lookin' at some kind of…" he trailed off, glancing swiftly over his shoulder before focusing back on Alex, "some kind of person." 

Alex scoffed, his feeling that the more portly engineer's concerns were ridiculous obvious. "What are you getting at?" 

"That we make our apologies, say our good-byes, and get off this ship as quick as we can," Dan growled. 

"Oh now wait a minute, Dan. Hold it. Hold it. Now let's stop and figure this thing out. If Reinhardt has anti-gravity strong enough to hold him here, I figure he's got enough to pull away," Harry interjected. 

Lifting an apple to his lips, Charlie arched a brow. "So?" 

Harry smiled brightly. "So why not take this ship and Reinhardt back home?" 

"Crazy!" I slurred. "He wouldn't budge. Crazy guy." 

Dan's eyes narrowed slightly. "That's a long shot you're talking about, Harry." 

"Oh, come on," Harry huffed as he looked over us both. "You've got two scientific wizards here to figure out the computers and they can even reprogram the robots. And the three of us can handle Reinhardt and that pet monster of his. Bet you that these guys could be a heck of a help getting his wily person under control!" he said with a sweep of his hand over me and my companions. "Heh. I'm tellin' ya, we could all be heroes." 

Dan blandly glared at the sparkling-eyed engineer. "We could also be dead." 

Alex closed his eyes, his lips twisting in disdain. "So, he neglected his duty to his country for a higher ideal. So what?" I stared at him, my eyes wide as his figure swayed in and out of focus even as Kate rested a hand on my shoulder and pried my goblet out of my hands. Alex continued on without interruption. "What basis in fact do you have for these macabre speculations? I agree that his style is somewhat unconventional. But he's willing and eager to share his knowledge with us. Doesn't that mean anything to you?" 

"We're not staying aboard any longer than we have to, Alex," Dan all but ordered. 

"Yeah!" Donald heartily agreed. 

Alex's eyes burned at us as he focused a scathing look upon us all. "That's up to Reinhardt." 

Even as Kate was easing a pill out of her flight suit and easing it between my lips, I blinked as it almost instantly began to dissolve and remove that marvelously fuzzy feeling from my skull. "Huh?" I intelligently pondered. 

Kate smirked at me before ruffling my spikes. "Detoxifying pill, Sora." Then, oddly enough, her eyes faded out of focus for a few moments. "Dan. Vincent wants you aboard the Palomino right away." 

Rising from his chair, Dan firmly nodded. "Let's go, Charlie," he directed to the youngest male in the room besides me. 

Harry huffed, rising from his chair and sauntering after the two retreating spacemen with smirk. "I think I'll tag along." 

"We're going with! What if Vincent's calling them about our gummi?" Donald squawked before he ran off, Goofy right behind him and 'hyucking' all the while. 

And once again, I was left alone with Kate, Alex and the huge foreboding black hole that was continually over our shoulders. 

_ -to be continued- _

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Review replies: 

Kendra Yuy: Well, the Heartless is just really getting his moments to shine here in Wonderland – having a fully functional connection to his brain and the degeneration it was going through being staved off while in the land of imagination really does wonders for him. I'm glad the story can still take freaky turns (they seem almost commonplace in 'Alice,' neh?) and I'm glad you r&r'd! As for them getting out with any of their sanity remaining… we'll see. Oh, we'll see. Thanks so much for the review! 

DarkStarPhoenix: Ha ha! Now I can reply to the review for the last chapter! Huzzah! Sorry I was a goober and never replied to the chapter 37 review. Crap. You may heartily flog me with a wet noodle for my ineptitude. First off, Leon practically is a whimpering child for a lot of FF8. I think, mayhaps, we may get to relive via memories or what not his utter and complete breakdown that he experiences in disc three of that game. (cackle) I love writing him like that – pulling elements of FF8 into a game where people have seen Squall but don't really know him or the game that generated him all that well (hence the 'the gunblade shot the guy, then slashed him' freaking KH fanfics (shudder)) is rather fun. And yeah, the Shadow's a bit screwy – but hey! It's pretty expected. Neh heh heh. BTW, you hear of the possibility of them bringing KH:CoM to PS2? Saw some video clips for it with Naminé and Marluxia! If they make Zexy look like he's five and Lexaeus look like Hulk Hogan on steroids, I'm going to spastically twitch myself to pieces. Oh, and KH2! Finally! Gratz! (glomp) Pridelands is SO freaking much fun. BTW, to forewarn you – level the crap out of your forms. High-level forms and high-level summons make the game ridiculously easy – and are almost a complete necessity when you take on the Hades Paradox Cup. (sagely nod) Plus, if you have all your forms leveled, smacking Sephiroth is like spanking the shit out of a baby. Easy. BTW, happy very belated birthday! (virtual b-day huggles) 

scarlettHuntress: Diet Coke is nutrasweet numminess! (drools uncontrollably) Tasties. Eh heh heh. Back on topic, of course Leon's not a raping psycho! He just has a bundle of issues upstairs that make Atlas' load look like a marble. As for rampaging circus sex with Cloud… well, Griffon kind of ruined that for a short while. Patience, m'dear! (cackle) 

Li the Twilight Knight: Yep, that most certainly was a griffin! Griffon. Whatever. Freaking alternate spelling's correct, too. (groan) I seriously have to get around to editing this whole darn fic – it's so flooded with errors I'm positively embarrassed. Anyway, yes, rambling about Zack is a grand way to spend time. And Leon's teary-eyed scene worked its magic! Huzzah! (fist pump) Anyway, congratz on getting past your computer problems, sorry this is out so late, and hope you liked this chapter… even though it was an escapade into Sora-ville. (sheepish grin) 

Leon: Ah, cool name. I've known a couple over my time – in fact, one of my coworkers' last name's Leon. Poor guy. Anyway, to reply to your review, thank you so much for your compliment! I actually do appreciate everyone who tells me that they like this story (and as much or sometimes more so those who point out errors or ask questions). I'm glad you found this story, and even happier that you had the patience to slog through every chapter! M'thinks it's getting a bit intimidating with its sheer chapter girth at times, but the gosh darned story refuses to slow its momentum yet (ACK!!! Gosh darn? No! Writing a Mickey fic on the side's affected my abilities to curse properly! (beats her head on her desk) Must… remedy… before… Cid chapter!) Leon and Cloud interaction will come again – just have patience. And I want hot sweaty smut, too. Just gotta get to the proper environment. Neh heh heh. Anyway, hope you liked this chapter! (humble li'l bow)

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(takes a moment to hum happily with the creepy as all heck soundtrack of 'The Black Hole' even as the Ansem Plushie finally is released by her hyperactive kitten. "SUBMIT!" it snarks before being tossed in the laundry machine to free it of drool and fur) Yes, reviews would be nice. Sora would appreciate them to boost his flagging self-confidence and regard for himself as an important character in the storyline – and I would love 'em,too, of course. :) 


	40. Sighting

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha. 

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_ -BEGIN FIC- _

Chapter 40  
The Ex-SOLDIER…? – Sighting 

A sigh of relief leaked from my lips as I stretched my arms above my head, my fingers twining together. My gait casual and relaxed, I flashed an easy grin at my surroundings. It was a rather pleasant looking day, in my ever so humble opinion.

The woods were fairly quiet around us, obscenely huge plants towering over us into the heavens. A faint mist clung to the ground, its tendrils winding around me as I trod across spongy feeling ground. The sky above, though putrid green in color, certainly didn't hold any promise of rain or similarly fowl weather events in the near future. And that luscious scent of mold! Alright, kidding on the last one. But while it was ever present, it wasn't so overpowering that a guy couldn't breath.

To make things even better, I'd finally managed to get part of the party Cloudster's been traveling with to segregate. Really, that damned Leon fellow was a batch of trouble I'd rather not have my little blond buddy having to deal with any time in the foreseeable future.

No one tries to hurt someone under my protection, no siree. It's comparable to waving your hand before the face of a starving, feral, rabid weasel and saying, "Aww, widdle guy wanna pway?" With that shit he tried to pull with Cloud, he's lucky he got off with a black eye and a few bruises. If I'd had my Buster Sword with me, it would've been a thousand times worse. Ah, yes. Leon kabobs. Cid and I could've fried them over a fire made out of those mushroom stalks we keep walking past. The little ant dude could have stoked the flames and brought us drinks. Heh heh.

Thinking of my Buster Sword drew me inevitably to the odd piece of weaponry I'd found myself in possession of instead of its rather marvelous self. Now granted, the overall design was strikingly similar to my old Buster Sword. A nice testimonial to it, I must say. However, all these detaching blades? Really, how is something this convoluted and segmented supposed to be useful? I can just see it now – smash it down into a foe, and watch my sword fly to pieces! Wee, that'll be a batch of fun. Except not.

And thinking of the weird damned sword that was hanging in its weird damned scabbard that kept whacking me with annoying accuracy upon my ass had me thinking of Cloud. It was rather odd that I'd not seen him lately. I know he was screaming for my help – I stepped forward and put that Leon twit in his place with a few good snarls and a decent right hook. But Cloud hasn't made himself known since then.

Ah well. All I could hope for was that the kid would have the sense to catch up with myself and old man Highwind later down the road.

"Well, what the hell," I heard Cid mutter behind me.

My progression over the springy mud that lined the shores of the river we were following came to an almost immediate halt. "What's up?" I asked as I turned on my heel, my hand going almost instantaneously to the hilt of the sword I had, my ears and eyes scanning everything in our environment for whatever threat could exist.

The wind rustled the top petals of a rose somewhere down the line. Grass calmly waved. Water sloshed gelatinously onto the sticky shore. Mud sucked angrily at my shoes as I slightly adjusted my footing. Cid's shuffling boots caused crackling sounds to emerge from the dried ground he was on, grinding remnants of long-shed leaves to further pieces than they'd already been reduced to. Very, very far off I could detect the buzzing of insect wings and the light tap of something tromping around on the mud, accompanied by the rumble of a distant waterfall. My eyes beheld nothing out of the ordinary – I watched every iota of movement I could detect, and found nothing that would constitute drawing my sword.

"Relax, bucko," Cid snorted. "I wasn't talkin' 'bout no fucking ambush. I was talking about the fucking smoke signals."

"Smoke signals, huh?" I responded, turning my gaze to the sky. I blinked once. Then twice. After third time was proven not to be as much of a charm as everyone professes, I let my jaw sag open a touch. "Neh, isn't that pointing back at where we came from?"

Nodding once, Cid kept his eyes on the sky. "Damned right it is."

We both yelped in shock as we saw a huge brown beast with big feathers spring out of the woods and descend into the foliage once again, its new entry point being at the destination pointed to by that dedicated smoky arrow that hovered above.

"The fuck!" Cid yelped, tightening his grip on his spear even as he tumbled to a stop at my side, his glistening eyes staring almost manically towards that distant place in the woods.

We both winced as we heard something explode and roar, like a cannon blowing a round into the sky, accompanied by a pained shriek. Closing my eyes, I focused on my hearing. I felt my lips curl into a snarling frown as I heard that little ant guy's voice yelp in fear and that Leon nearly scream in rage. Then a powerful downward sweep of wings, talons scraping over rock and a cry of terror from the ant guy again.

Just a second later, Cid was bursting out of our hiding spot. His sudden burst of movement damned near had me jumping out of my skin, my eyes springing wide open.

"Fucking god damned hell! You lousy whore mongering bitch! Get your winged pansy ass down here!" he screamed as he flailed madly with his spear, running through the spacious woods in the direction that winged thing had landed.

I chased after him, even as I saw that beast leave the cover of the woods' foliage once more, carrying both the scar-faced nitwit and the shadowy guy I didn't mind so much up with it in its front claws. "Crap!" I cursed.

Not about Leon. About the shadowy ant guy. He was actually pretty cool.

Catching rapidly up with Cid, I grabbed his arm and yanked him into the cover provided by a fungal offshoot of a decrepit, decaying log. "Hold your chocobos, will you?"

"That thing just snatched Leon and the Heartless!" Cid snapped at me, his dried lips pulled from his grimacing teeth, spittle foaming between his incisors.

"Yeah." Calmly pointing up, I watched as the floating smoke signal twisted itself into a round, swirling green mass through which the beast flew, taking its victims with it. I blinked only once this time, observing as they all vanished from site. "And they're gone. The smoke's going away. So there's no way we can follow them to rescue them."

Cid eyes glittered eerily as he glared at me. "We aren't 'bout to just give up on 'em. Fuck your problems with Leon – he's a good kid under all the shit that Wonderland's doin' to him. I'm not lettin' nobody leave this fucking place unless we're all together."

Shrugging, I took a deep breath. Breathing trick I learned from my girlfriend – breath in the good air, hold it so it mingles with the impurities inside, breath out the bad air. Lather, rinse, repeat. Actually works – especially when you're dealing with the most anal retentive of Generals in the Shinra SOLDIER outfit, but that's not exactly the point. Oh. Breathe. Good idea, that one. Releasing that breath, I drew another before resuming normal respiration. "I got'cha, Cid. And while I might heartily disagree with your concern for the guy that attacked my buddy Cloud, I'll consent to your dedication to getting everyone out of this weird place. Instead of standing here and whining impotently about it, though, we really ought to come up with a plan."

Cid rubbed his forehead with a gnarled, twisted hand, his eyes squinting shut until they were just little lashes-lined indentations on his wrinkly face. "Fucking hell. And right now's when I'm regrettin' separating with Leon – he's a fucking wizard when it comes to strategy… well, when he's sane and all."

"And what am I? Chopped liver?"

Snorting, he opened one eye to proper glower at me. "Zack, with all the horror stories that I've heard that revolve around your name, I wouldn't trust you to strategize your way out of a wet paper bag in the middle of a rainstorm."

"Sheesh. Harsh," I muttered.

"Shut yer fuckin' yap, kiddo. Lemme think."

Shrugging, I leaned against the log I'd tugged the spear-wielding man under, crossing my arms behind my head and scratching at my hair. Marvelously strange how it feels so much shorter than usual. And the spikes are all bending the wrong way, too.

As Cid hemmed and hawed at my side, I took time to stare at the few stray bits of hair that dangled in my view. Squinting my eyes, I reflected on what I could see and came to one inevitable conclusion – I must have truly died, and whoever dragged me out of the Life Stream had one heck of a sick sense of humor.

I remember the one time I'd tried to bleach my hair blond. I was ridiculed by the entire population of my barracks until I grit my teeth and shaved my head. And all of that crap because of a dare – a fellow SOLDIER candidate said he'd get breast implants if I dyed my pride and joy.

All things considered, I got the good end of the deal.

But still, blond hair. Again. I must've looked like a freak.

Shaking my head, I glanced once again at Cid, watching as he picked up an errant twig that had roughly the same girth as a cigarette and shoved it between his teeth, chomping angrily down on it. "You know, I just thought of something."

He glanced at me, some of the rage having leaked from his gaze. In fact, I thought I could see a touch of desperation in them. "What, brat?"

"Well, that thing that captured Leon and the Heartless as you so like to call the little ant guy flew into the smoke signal and vanished."

"He's called a Heartless, you bumbling buffoon. Not 'little ant guy.'"

"That's rather beside the point," I huffed. "Anyway, that smoke signal was, what, some sort of portal?" When I'd received a nod of affirmation, I let my lips curl with a satisfied smile. "So all we've got to do is find the guy that made it and get him to send us to them."

Cid's mouth sagged open, his twig hanging expertly between his teeth as only something in the jaws of a proficient smoker can. "By the fucking heavens, you came up with a good idea. Well, what the fuck."

"What, going to sit back and await the coming of the Apocalypse now?" I snickered, my grin turning a bit more devious. "That's what the General would always do."

"Fuck no, that'd waste time. C'mon and get off your ass, kid. We've gotta figure out where those signals came from!"

Rising to my feet, I shrugged. "Not so hard. Over there," I stated, pointing off deep into the woods. "I noticed its source of origin when we'd first noticed it."

Rolling his eyes, my traveling companion snorted something quite derogatory concerning Mako infusion and enhanced senses not being right before stomping off in the direction I'd pointed.

Following at his heels, I smirked even as I drew my strange sword out of its sheath, thanking the nonexistent stars above that it was actually completely put together so I didn't have to figure out how to put tab 'A' into slot 'B' or some other random crap like that. "Oh, and we might want to be careful, Cid," I cheerfully proclaimed.

"What the fuck for?" he snorted at me.

"Because there're things stomping around up here."

No sooner had the words left my lips than a pair of giant ants tore around a large tree, their bayonets lowered and ready for us.

What the fuck. Ants?

No kidding, actual ants. Like, with six legs and segmented bodies and everything. Not so much like the little ant gu… alright, Heartless that was running around with us such a short while ago. But ants? With bayonets on single-shot styled rifles? Wearing blue jackets that looked like they'd been stripped off old army soldiers?

Yeah. Strange. No kidding..

But seeing as how these things were charging towards us with their bayonets lowered and their mandible-sporting heads ducked low, I figured they were up to no good. Cid must've figured the same thing, because he was setting his spear firmly against the ground and roaring for them to 'come get some.'

Brandishing my sword, I leapt forward with a roar of challenge flying from my lips. One of the ants pulled its charge short, lifting its musket before one big multifaceted eye.

Even as it pulled the trigger, I let my foot find the dirt under me and instantly changed my vector of approach. Darting to the side in the blink of an eye, felling the disturbance in the air made by the passing of that fired bullet, I leered even as I found the ground with my other foot and shoved off towards my opponents once more. I twisted the hilt of my sword in my hands, getting a quick feel for it before lifting it before me. A touch of a toe on the ground and I sent myself skyward, bringing my sword above my head.

I crashed down atop my foe even as Cid was busily going head-to-head with its companion, his weapon's superior length keeping him mostly free from harm. I grinned at my comrade.

And the next moment, I was lurching back, my breath exploding from my lungs with a strangled cry and one of my hands leaving the hilt of my oversized sword to grasp limply at the bayonet that had firmly pierced my side.

With a heavy thump I hit the ground, that ant that speared me having hurled me directly over its head and into a group of rocks that oddly enough scattered away as soon as I careened into them. Groggily gripping my profusely bleeding side, I winced and glared at my blood-stained, thin fingers. "Crap," I hissed as I staggered to my feet, using my sword as leverage.

I heard the skittering of four legs scrambling over dirt, approaching me rapidly.

Focusing on my hearing, I twisted my sword as swiftly as I could away from the ground, wrenching its point through dirt and the remnants of leaves, through one of those skittering rocks and an idly drifting flower petal to bring it crashing against the musket's barrel that was set to be used on me once more. The metal ground heartily against that in the grip of my opponent, the sound grating and grinding in my ears. Soon a sharp crack met my senses, accompanied by a thump off in the dust and the startled backpedaling of four pointed appendages.

I'd snapped the bayonet off my opponent's weapon.

Opening my eyes, I leered at it as it stared at me, its multifaceted eyes taking in what was certain to be the last thing it ever saw.

I charged, my bloodied hand bringing itself instinctively to my sword's hilt, and slashed with every ounce of speed and skill I possessed. The weapon almost tore itself free of my hand as I sent it through the ant, the heavy resistance of its armor-like exoskeleton almost more than I could handle.

Its severed body spewed green goo everywhere even as its head bounced off the forest floor.

Gasping, I glanced over at Cid, giving him a thumbs up as he managed to drive his spear's sharp point right into what I could only see as a neck, staining the pretty uniform shirt on the creature green with its own bodily fluids. As it fell limply before him, he cursed colorfully even as he fought to wrench his weapon free.

"Good job," I groaned as I flopped onto my ass on the forest floor. Damn, but that dirt felt so comfortable.

"Not so shabby yourself," he huffed even as he hovered by the body of his kill, his frame stooped and blood trickling lazily from a small scalp wound he must have received during his battle. "Got yourself lanced damned good, though. Use the fucking Metaessence before I pummel you with it."

I blinked once, glancing over my companion. Amazingly enough, that scalp wound appeared to be his only injury. "Wow, you only got hit once? Don't even need a potion, do you?"

He huffed angrily before his hand shot down towards the fallen body of the ant he'd slaughtered, snatching something that had just begun to swirl into existence above its corpse. As soon as his hand collided with the faint red mist that was seemingly solidifying, it dissipated and coated his fingers, traveling up his arm and bathing his body temporarily in a soft crimson glow.

"Woah, that's cool!" I exclaimed as I watched his miniscule scalp wound heal, leaving nothing behind but dried blood in his platinum hair. "So we don't even _need_ potions here, do we?"

He huffed in quiet exasperation. "That's right, Zack. Just get the damned thing that's comin' out of your kill before it goes away, will you? They don't seem to last forever."

"Oh, right," I instantly replied, realizing for the first time that a softly glowing pyramid filled with red light was hovering over the body that I'd laid to rest. Reaching out, I poked at it with a grin taking my lips. And as that pyramid burst open and let its light bathe me, I chuckled. "Awesome," I breathed, feeling the wound in my side slowly begin to knit itself together.

Unfortunately, the effect wasn't as long as I'd desired. As I rose to my feet, I winced. Pain was still oozing from the site of my puncture wound. A small touch of blood still trickled from my flesh. Apparently it hadn't been enough to heal me completely. "Damn it," I whined.

"Well, maybe that'd teach you not to fight like a fucking moron," Cid barked.

"Heh. Like a moron, huh?" I mused, scratching my chin before idly massaging my bloodied side. "And how would you define my fighting as moronic?"

He huffed at me. "Chargin' head on with somethin' you've never faced before? Damned stupid."

Shrugging once, I straightened my stance. "Well. At least that Metaessence stuff handily appeared. Happens every time you wipe out a foe?" A grin crossed my lips even as Cid nodded, and I merrily proclaimed, "Fine! Then all I have to do is make sure I don't get hit in the next few battles, and they should be enough to do the job. Kinda like a potion vice a hi or megapotion. Just wasn't quite enough."

Rolling his eyes, he turned and started walking again. "Good 'nuff plan, kiddo. But instead of standing around yammerin', why not get movin'?"

"Oh, sure thing!" I chirped as I jogged to catch up with him. Slowing to a walk was I came by his side, I slid my sword back into the scabbard that kept bouncing against my butt as I walked and laced my fingers together behind my head, a happy little tune flowing from my throat.

It wasn't long until we wandered towards a huge chasm cutting through the earth, its continence something like a grand scar upon the ground. Huge and foreboding, the rift through our current plane of travel beckoned to us, taunting us by dividing us from our obvious destination.

"Crap!" Cid bit, chomping down viciously on the twig he had sticking out of his maw. "You're sure the fucking smoke was drifting from the other damned side of this shitty thing?"

"Absotively posolutely," I said with a nod.

"Fucktard. Speak properly for once in your godforsaken life."

With an easy smile, I glanced towards our left as I toed the edge of the ravine with my right foot. Seeing nothing but the continuance of our little obstacle, I sent my gaze instead to my right. Letting my eyes drift up and down a large and prominent tree that stuck its way mockingly out of the mists that swirled far below and obscured what was certainly a hard landing and a promised grisly death, I whistled. "Well, no way across that I can see. Unless you feel like playing some George of the Jungle."

Cid quirked a brow. "Some what?"

Facing him, I winked casually. "Old story I heard back in my childhood days. About some wild ape guy that would swing around his jungle home with vines and shit. I don't remember the premises of the story, but I do remember trying to replicate his moves and falling smack on my head. Smarted like crazy!"

Eyes blandly staring at me, Cid gnawed his twig. "Ya know, that explains so damned much."

"Anywa… what ho? Hey! There's a rabbit over there! And it's waving at us!"

"A rabbit?" Cid instantly exclaimed, dashing to my side and very nearly sending himself over the edge of the perilous cliff I was standing atop of. Grabbing his waistband, I clucked my tongue even as I used every ounce of strength Hojo's Mako infusion experiments granted me to hold him in place. The old guy didn't give me any recognition of my efforts to keep him alive, instead focusing his attention on the white rodent across the ravine. "That's the fucking White Rabbit the Cheshire Cat told us to talk to! Fucking hell, that lousy bastard!" Lifting a fist, he shook it wildly. "Get yer ass over here, bunny-fucker! We gotta talk to your mangy self about Alice!"

Its wane voice drifted towards us upon an errant breeze. "We mustn't dawdle! So late, so late!" he cried before checking a large pocket watch and dashing further into the woods.

"FUCK!" Cid screamed angrily.

Scratching my head with the hand not occupied with keeping Cid from meeting his pasty end at the bottom of the ravine we stood by, I huffed. "Well, looks like it's going to be a hop, skip and a jump through the boughs of that tree. No choice, if that's the guy you're supposed to catch. Also no choice if we're going to find the guy that make that smoke portal."

"What a shitty day," my traveling companion huffed, setting his focus on the tree in question.

Smiling brightly, I hauled him more solidly to my side before releasing him and starting my trek towards the nearest outcropping of rocks that existed by that tree – if we were going to jump to it and frolic over its limbs, I wanted to make it as easy on the old man as possible.

A random wind whistled by, the leaves on that tree rustling at us.

Oh, challenging us now, Wonderland?

I felt my lips curl in a daring smirk.

Hell yes. If you're going to challenge me….

I accept.

_ -to be continued- _

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Review replies: 

Li the Twilight Knight: You know… (slight grin) I like your analysis of Sora's part in KH. Poor little twerp is crying his eyeballs out about being unloved. (snicker) Of course he's not as hot as Leon and Cloud! They're in their 20s. He's, like, a freaking new initiate into that mystic thing called puberty and being a teenager. Sheesh. (leans back in her chair) Demyx looking like Zell? Hmmm. He needs a big honkin' tattoo down his face. (wicked grin) And Axel's gotta be the nobody of a person named Lea, if you follow the entire 'remove the X and rearrange the letters' thing Disney did. (cackle) Yeah, I know there're other combinations, but that one's freaking hilarious. The CL bonus chapter is coming. Slowly but surely, it's coming. We've just gotta make it out of Wonderland first. (conniving cackle) Thanks for the review! (hug)

Kitty Kyinsky: Thank you so much for submitting to the Ansem plu… I mean a review! Eh heh heh… I seemed to make a lot of people rather angered with poor Leon with those scenes. Glad you still find him likable! (vigorous nods) As for circumstances keeping Leon from learning the truth about psycho!Cloud, we'll have to see. I myself am not completely certain – I'm hoping it'll be soon, but first I've got to wrangle them through their new hellhole. (shiver) I can't wait to get them moving there… it's the most terrifying area of the game, in my humble opinion. Play American McGee's Alice! Enjoy the Mad Hatter's realm! (quits shameless plug)

DanteMoon: Aw, I'm happy you're continuing to enjoy it! That truly makes me happy. As for Hans and Hojo… you know, it's danged similar, almost. Scarily so. At least I can proudly proclaim that I'm not ripping Hojo with him! Reinhardt's not mine. He's Disney's. From back in the day when Disney was cool enough to come up with such cult-favorite weird crap as 'The Black Hole.' Mwa ha ha. Thanks for reviewing!

DarkStarPhoenix: Oh sheesh. So long! Congratz on your school certificate! And as for Sora drunk… I'm probably basing him too heavily off myself there. I've loved wine since I was six, and I was starving when I was writing the dinner scene – and at work, so I was desperate for alcohol. (laughs) Anyway, Riku's fringe actually made me happy. I thought he was cute as heck (cough jail bait cough). Glad you got to beat the game – I'm tempted to play it again without completing the Jiminy Journal just so I can see what's not included in the perfect ending, actually. Thanks for the compliment – I doubt I'm doing better than you could, but I do try my best. (humble bow)

scarlettHuntress: Neh heh heh. Such a damned pity there's no real time passage between the dinner scene and the rest of 'The Black Hole,' otherwise I'd let him enjoy hangovers. (cackle) Damned detox pill! Ruin all of his fun. (evil grin)

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(sighs quietly, laying her head on her keyboard and cackling softly) Back on a roll… want it to continue…? (hefts freshly washed Ansem plushie and yanks his pull string, snerking as he barks "SUBMIT!") Yes. Submit. Or the Heartless plushie gets it. (blinks) Actually… rescind that. The Heartless plushie's too damned cute. (whimpers and cuddles it) 


	41. Breakdown

Blargh! Honk. (blinks) What? You guys don't watch 'Red vs. Blue'?

Eh heh heh. Sorry. Just need a moment of hearty giggling fun before I delve into what is certainly the most depraved and warped chapter of any story I've ever written. Geh. Not only did I have to break my set maximum page limit for this baby, I also had to sacrifice my brain with a side of burgeoning soul just to take Leon through his last steps to my authorial goals for him in Wonderland. This sucker killed my innocence. On to the standard disclaimer crap.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, American McGee's Alice or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) Italicized statements are actually script from Final Fantasy VIII, therefore occur soley in Leon's befuddled head (his own statements and thoughts taken from the game script don't get this treatment, as they're currently being stated and/or thought)– this edit was made after my IRL reader/reviewer who'd never played the game lamented profusely about her confusion. Final Fantasy VIII geeks, see if you can recall where every in-game statement came from! Yee ha! For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 41  
The SeeD Commander – Breakdown

_"SeeD is a valuable asset to Garden. Its reputation is solely dependant on each one of you. Handle your mission with care."_

"Leon! Are you alive? You had to have survived that fall, right?"

_"Don't disappoint me now."_

My eyes pinched more tightly shut as pain raced through my body. I felt as though I'd been dashed against stones from a mile in the sky.

"I found your gunblade. Look, I even brought it over! C'mon, open your eyes, Leon."

_"Finally… A gunblade specialist."_

I slowly opened my eyes, blinking blearily as I stared without immediate recognition at my surroundings.

A padded cell, its barred door cracked open, its once pristine walls splattered with speckles of dried vitae and gore and bloodied children's handprints. A stain of brown in a corner, a faint yellow tinge to the padded material below me. A glaring white bulb hanging from its bare wire dangling above. A shadowy being hovering over me, aquamarine eyes staring at me.

"Can you hear me? Are you alright?"

A hospital room. A curtain flapping serenely by a large, slightly opened window. A dull fluorescent light, its brilliance dimmed by the switch that controlled it commanding it to be off. A hard bed underneath me. A raven-haired head hovering over me, chocolate eyes blinking at me.

_"Looks like your eyes are focusing. You should be fine. Say your name for me."_

"Squall," I groaned in response to Doctor Kadowaki's request, lifting a hand to lightly pinch along the bridge of my nose. My fingers caressed a long, jagged wound racing across my flesh.

Lightly tracing the disfigurement, I felt a scowl work its way onto my lips. Starting nearly in the center of and above the middle of my right eyebrow, it slashed viciously across my face to terminate below my left eye, cutting solidly into my cheek. A gift from Seifer. I wondered if he was appreciating the gash I gave him in return.

I stirred slightly, lifting my head as I heard a disturbance nearby.

A floating skeleton? A high pitched scream? My hand grappled in darkness for my gunblade.

The scream, echoing in my brain, hissed with accusation coloring its tone, _"I knew it'd be you or Seifer! Come on, let's go."_

My hand found my gunblade. I exploded out of the door, my weapon flying almost of its own accord, its deadly edge finding the person before me even as it smirked towards the good doctor who'd looked over me, its jaws parting to profess, _"I'm his support. Instructor No. 14, Quistis Trepe."_

My hand came to a halt. I vaguely heard screaming behind me. A shadowy form leapt away from my side, dodging as a chain whip raced for its head.

"Leon! Move! If you subject yourself to the attack, you might actually die with the amount of damage you've taken! I've got this one."

A chain whip? Or a scream?

"_You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them. I guess my charm makes them nervous,"_ she giggled at me, her hand rising to cover full, supple red-painted lips. I blinked as I watched her skeletal phalanges cross before a parted, rotting maw.

Whatevever.

A ball sparkling with electrical energy collided solidly with the form before me. Its scream roared through the slim corridors we were in. It burst into flame.

"_Come on, move it!"_ Quistis' voice echoed_. "Hurry, Squall!"_

Gripping my gunblade more tightly, I struck out across the crumbling floor before me, barely hearing someone's voice edge in on my consciousness.

"What are you doing, Leon? You don't seriously intend to march in there, do you? There very well might be an army of those banshees waiting for us."

I blinked. Turning my head slightly as my boots finally made solid purchase on a floating chunk of black and white checkered tile, I let my head swivel towards the origin of that question. "What was that?"

_"… Figures… B-B-But, we have a whole bunch of SeeDs at Balamb Garden! They won't lose to the Galbadian army, would they?"_

I sighed quietly as I looked over my aquamarine-eyed companion, almost frowning at his ridiculous question. "Depends on how strong the army is," I quickly replied.

"How strong the army is?" the shadowy being asked, his head tilting to the side, his antennae bobbling mindlessly as it dumbly repeated my statement.

Another voice slid from the darkness before me, oozing from behind closed doors. _"Oh, you're just a great leader, aren't you? Do you actually have fun acting so callously towards your comrades?"_ it snarled in reprimand.

That voice… I never wanted to hear it so angered. But some part of my brain recognized this. It recognized everything. … Not again.

"_Don't you ever worry about or even think about the well-being of your comrades?"_

I don't believe in relying on others.

"_Don't you understand?"_

… Whatever.

My companion dared to reach out and lightly touch my arm. _"Squall!"_ his voice called, that same loud voice that haunts some of my most horrible dreams. That voice that always prattled that I don't get along with Seifer, and that he'd heard the blond gunblade wielder had whooped me pretty bad no matter how much I snapped that we weren't fighting but training instead. The voice that squawked for me to show him my gunblade. Zell.

"_Wake up!"_ a light voice cried, its tone edged with worry and fear. A voice that was so very familiar. A voice that had shouted for me to escape, to live for everyone at Balamb. A voice that could only belong to a girl with a yellow sundress and flipped hair with a near obsessive love for trains. Selphie.

"_Come on, Squall!"_ Quistis' voice roared from nowhere.

… I'm… fine…

"I'm fine," I groaned a moment later. "Let's go."

The shadowy figure's aquamarine pools widened, something akin to shock and fear boiling in their abysmal, unblinking depths. "Right," his wispy voice whimpered as he tightened his grip on the croquet mallet in its clawed hand.

I arched a brow. "Where'd you get that?"

"That griffon that brought us here dropped it right before it flew through one of those smoky green portals in the sky. Whatever power created that portal in the sky above the forest we were in followed us to this place, apparently," the creature replied.

Lifting a hand to my head, I rubbed lightly at my temple. It felt as though my brain were throbbing mercilessly in my skull.

Griffon…? When the hell had I seen a griffon….

"_Hey! You guys are the last! Hurry up and get in!"_

My eyes shot their focus onto the huge double doors. With a snarl, I gripped my gunblade tightly and burst towards them. We had to get moving. We had to get through. Otherwise, we'd be disregarding the orders of the squad leader.

"_This is great…. I have a Chicken-wuss and a guy who just reached puberty in my squad…"_ I heard muttered from beyond those doors.

He was waiting.

"_Don't disappoint me now,"_ that voice taunted.

"Leon!" the shadowy form shouted behind me.

I glared back. "Everyone has to take care of themselves. I don't want to carry anyone's burden," I snapped.

"_Squall. It's not like everyone can get by on their own, you know?"_

"Leon? What the hell are you talking about?"

"I…" I began, my jaws parting slightly.

"_I'm not asking you to say anything. I just want you to listen,"_ that creature's voice said, sounding eerily feminine.

"Then go talk to a wall."

My resolve to continue the conversation completely dissolved, I set my hands upon those double doors and shoved them open. They swung open with a loud, outraged creak. The hinges hissed in discontent.

Blankly looking through the doorway, I stared at the forked passage and the way before me that would set me upon a giant gear whose center was pierced by a screw. A door lay on the opposing side of my position, its contours glistening on the gear's polished surface, its wooden construction solid and barricading me from the next room within the structure.

I glanced first to the left, then to the right. Scratching my chin, I glanced down at my shadowy companion.

As his aquamarine eyes set on me, he brightly professed, _"You're the leader, Squall. What are the teams?"_

Leader? I never asked to be the leader.

Other voices sounded off around me. _"C'mon, Squall!"_ I clearly heard Zell say. _"You have to decide, Squall!"_ Quistis' voice called again even as the stooped creature beside me cocked his head, his antennae wriggling.

"_Squall, think carefully now!"_

Rinoa?

Glancing around, I scowled as I saw none of the persons I was looking for.

"Leon, what do we do?"

I glared down at my companion at my side. I'd had it up to here with this leader thing… My eyes narrowed further, the scar between my eyebrows crinkling in protest as my brow furrowed.

I heard the creature's voice meet my ears. _"Everyone, please follow his orders."_

I can't believe this…. I don't even have a choice?

_"Squall, we're under your command from now on. This is your fate. It is your destiny to lead the way in defeating the sorceress."_

"Don't talk about this like it's been decided since my birth!" I screamed, flinging a hand errantly to my side, my other tightly holding my gunblade's hilt.

To my surprise, the creature skittered back, his eyes huge as he stared at me with fear dancing in the solidly colored planes that comprised their aquamarine fields. Snorting, I turned back towards the decision I had before me. Order, order… I had to make a decision.

_"Our plan is to…"_

"…_Blow it to smithereens with a rocket launcher!"_

With a snort, I shook my head. "Not in this case, Selphie."

"Selphie…? Leon, are you certain you're alright?"

With a grunt, I glared over. "I'm fine. How many times must I tell you?"

_"You're the squad leader. Good luck to you."_

I blinked a few times. With a shiver, I stood perfectly still even as that shadowy form's eyes burrowed into me. I could sense him behind me – I could feel his breath at my back, his eyes burrowing into my skull through my hair, his smile mocking and his brows furrowed. Then I heard him. _"…Instructor. I hate it when people wish me luck. Save those words for a bad student that needs them, eh?"_

"Don't even suggest that I need good luck," I grunted at the creature (Quistis?) before me before turning on my heel. I blinked in shock when I noted that Seifer wasn't behind me; I'd felt him just moments ago, but now he was gone. "I agree with Seifer on that sentiment."

Hanging his head, the being just sighed quietly. "Sure thing. So, as for a plan now that we've charged errantly in here? Split up, or stay together?"

"Why don't you come up with something?" I grunted.

_"Hey, hey, hey, this isn't my department."_

I frowned, my lips turning as I heard that familiar Galbadian lilt flow by my ears. I'd missed it amongst the agglomeration of familiar voices in the atmosphere; without it, life seemed almost incomplete. Funny, considering how much it aggravated me on a regular basis – also, funny considering that he was the last of my childhood friends I'd been reunited with and our time together had been short at best. With an exasperated sigh, I shook my head. "Then what is?"

_"…Guns and women of course."_

"Guns and women. Of course. How could I forget? Well, since this isn't your department… we split. You take left. I'll take right. Manipulate anything you find – there's got to be a way out of this room, and I'm willing to bet some switch or lever or stone or riddle unlocks it. Rather like the path to get to the center of the Tomb of the Unknown King, now that I think about it."

Cocking his head, the shadowy creature twitched his clawed fingers nervously. "You think that's wise?"

"You're more than capable of defending yourself. I have faith in your abilities," I softly consoled.

_"…Squall… being sensitive? That's weird. You're the last person I expected to cheer me up. I must really look depressed."_

What's so weird? I care just like everybody else. It's just that there are too many things that can't be helped. So why bother talking about everything.

Waving a hand at me, the shadow tilted his head. "Well, if you trust me on my own, then I'll be off. Reconvene here if we hit a dead end, you think?"

"Sure…" I mindlessly mouthed even as I mulled over his statement while turning on my heel to head down the right pathway. Am I that untrusting…? Maybe I'm this way because I'm scared. Nothing lasts in this world. It feels great to have friends who believe in you, and adults you can rely on.

Screams echoed in my mind. A set of double doors remained locked despite my efforts to knock them away. Shadows leaked down the hallways, stealing the hearts from my friends and comrades. My shoulders shuddered without control, a shiver slithering along my spine.

That's why it's so dangerous, especially if you become used to it. Someday you're bound to lose everything.

_"You can't change the past. I just found that out."_

The voice resounded over the stone floor, barely audible over the hollow thumping of my boots as I slowly meandered through the unlit hall.

That's right. The past can't be changed. Which means that without fail….

Everyone around you will be gone. Then what are you left with?

Nothing. Nobody….

It's so miserable. And it's inevitable.

Shadowy Heartless creatures barreling down the halls of the Garden. Shadowy Heartless creatures barreling down the streets of Traverse Town. Shadowy Heartless creatures barreling through the ravines surrounding Hallow Bastion.

It's so hard to recover from something like that.

I never ever want to deal with that again.

I can't.

Even if it means being alone.

I blinked mindlessly as I came to an abrupt dead end. Glancing around, I sighed as I took note of my surroundings. The hallway's walls were covered with what looked to be faded newsprint, the words blending in so well with the sullied and browned paper that I couldn't begin to discern what any of it said. The ceiling overhead was blackened with dead mold. The floor under my feet was still the same hard stone I'd been plodding over. Before me was a silver lever with a red handle.

A shrug moved my shoulders as I grabbed it and pulled.

Grinding noises barreled from my left side. Turning, I watched as the giant gear I'd noted when I'd first entered this chamber spin slowly, completely visible through the rather crude holes carved in the walls. On the other side of the gear I could see another hole, the shadowy form I'd spoken with upon its other side. He was pulling a lever as well – a groan of machinery that didn't wish to cooperate echoed through the still air.

Time to reconvene.

We met in what seemed to be minimal time, the shadow's big aquamarine eyes staring expectantly up at me. _"Greetings, commander!"_

"Don't call me that," I groaned.

"Call you what?"

I shook my head. "Never mind. The door across that gear opened. Let's go," I ordered instead.

"Sure thing," the shadowy being replied before ambling off, his gait disjointed yet swift. I was hard pressed to keep up.

"Careful on the teeth," I bit as my companion shuffled close to the edge of the gear we were on, looking for a way to leap from the slowly turning platform we occupied into the hallway we'd just opened.

I dashed forward as he fell with a startled yelp, my hand barely missing his as he toppled.

Moments later, a splashing noise struck my ears immediately followed by a pained cry. The shadow slithered up the wall and sprang from it, landing neatly onto the gear. Putrid green water slithered down his hunched body. "Ow," he whimpered.

Reaching out, I pressed a finger against him. With a sharp hiss I pulled it away.

My skin burned madly, the tip I'd pressed against his wetted body angrily red. My eyes widened slightly as I watched a bit of flesh slough off my affected digit. "Acid," I breathed.

"No kidding. I vote we stay away from it," his voice groaned.

"You're alright?" I inquired.

He looked himself over before nodding. _"What a relief! Everything's cool with me!"_

Acidic water. That made things interesting. Especially in a place that seemed so impossible, so horrible, that it must have been drawn from a hideously twisted imagination.

Either that, or a nightmarish dream….

"_Hee! I had such a nice dream!"_

I scowled as I recalled the dream I'd had. I couldn't begin to match Selphie's enthusiasm. I had a dream, too. It wasn't nice though… I dreamt I was a moron….

Something in my chest panged at the memory of that dream.

"Earth to Leon!" the shadowy creature all but shouted, waving his hand as highly as he tried to shake his claws before my blank eyes. "Aren't we going to get going?"

"A moment," I hissed softly as I lightly rubbed at my temples again.

"We don't have all year. We have to figure out why that griffon brought us here. We have to find our way back to the others. We have to find the gummi!"

"I know," I growled quietly. "Don't tell me what to do."

Silencing himself for a moment, he shook his head, his antennae waving a bit. "Fine. Then I'll go ahead. Catch up quickly. That fine with you?"

"_Come on Mr. Kinneas, let's go!"_

…H-Hey.

That light Galbadian accented voice struck my brain fiercely even as the form of my companion began to amble away. _"Call me Irvine. I'm a pretty lucky guy. Hand in hand with two beautiful girls!"_

Was… was he seeing something I wasn't? Had to be. I'd heard Rinoa. And the next moment, I could swear that Selphie's voice was coming from his direction, too.

"_Irvy Kinnepooo! I'll make you happy!"_

They were abandoning me…? The women weren't even showing themselves to me? Did I say something terrible?

Women…

I don't understand women.

As the shadow turned a corner, he abruptly came to a halt. Apparently he wasn't going to leave me quite as far behind as he'd originally made me believe he'd planned. A scowl marking my lips, I caught up quickly with my companion.

My eyes widened as I saw what had made him stop his short journey.

Written on the wall in blood, the letters huge and vivid as the red coloration of freshly spilled vitae glistened in the faint light of the corridor we occupied, they stood in bold declaration that we were less than invited in the area we had been forcibly inserted into.

'You're Next!' stood blindingly out from the dingy brown wall, those words underlined in hastily sprawling splattered lines of bodily fluids.

"Crap," my companion whimpered.

"Ignore it," I calmly suggested. Despite my bland demeanor, I quaked internally – however, I had enough presence of mind to not display my worry to the being that accompanied me through anything other than the tightening of my hand upon my gunblade's hilt.

Pressing past the heart-stopping warning, I found myself face to face with a door. A simple push pressed it open.

A cat grinned hideously in the reflection of a huge mirror overlooking a pool of that acidic green water that was littered with pedestals carrying clock faces on them. "A reflection sometimes offers more reality than the object it echoes," a gravely voice warned.

Glancing up, the shadow frowned. "What do you suppose he meant by that?"

Scratching my chin, I glanced at the pool before us then back at the reflective glass that cat had appeared in. A brow quirked as I stared a bit more harshly.

"The mirror's reflection is different than what's seen if you look right at the pool. Only some of those pedestals have clock faces."

"Meaning?" the shadow pondered.

It's a puzzle. A challenge. And an easy one at that. Holding my gunblade tightly, I gauged the distance that existed between my current location and the first pedestal that displayed a solid face in that mirror. A careful leap landed me on my target. A moment later, I poked delicately at the pedestal I'd leapt over.

My suspicion was proved correct. As soon as pressure alighted atop the pedestal whose top was unmarked in the reflective surface of the mirrored wall beside me, it collapsed momentarily.

A simple trap. Land on the wrong platform, and a guy ends up in an impromptu acid bath.

Looking once more, I set my sight on a lever that beckoned to me. Two more quick leaps placed me before it.

As I yanked it back, the shadow shouted from our entry point, "Hey! A door just opened over there."

"Get through it. I'll join you," I commanded.

He slithered effortlessly along the walls, leaving me to the perilous task of leaping from clock face-bearing pedestal to clock face-bearing pedestal. Stepping through, I almost fell right onto my ass as a blade-wielding robot rushed past me.

Carried on a single wheel vice a pair of legs, it rapidly motored down the hallway I'd just entered. A simple, wide torso swiveled effortlessly around a ball-bearing waist, straight arms swinging out to spin blades at whatever it targeted on. Those arms swung forward, missiles launching from holes in its proverbial shoulders, helmeted head glaring forward with its red-tinted viewfinder glistening, triple-bladed 'hands' snapping open to spew frosty air in the direction it faced.

A croquet ball smashed solidly into its face, knocking it right over with a screech of metal and a strange metallic cry.

"Nice," I briefly appraised.

"_Thanks for the support, but I never miss my target."_

"Don't have to be so fucking cocky about it," I hissed.

"I wasn't aware I was being cocky."

Ignoring the shadowy creature, I turned on my heel to stare down the hallway I'd emerged into. Stretching off before and behind me, the doorway I'd entered through facing a stone wall, I realized quickly that we were on a suspended bridge that overhung yet another pool of that acid water. Small walkways connected the bridge I was on to heavy steel doors with thick bars covering what small space was allotted within the doors' structures for viewing windows. Walking to the immediate end of the hallway before me, I gave the door that resided there an experimental tug only to find it was locked tight.

"Start checking the doors," I suggested quietly.

"Sure thing," my companion uttered.

Soon we discovered that only one of those doors was open – a door that already stood ajar, leading into a room whose tiled floor was in shambles. An ominous hole plunged down to an apparent second floor below.

Taking the lead, I quickly shimmied down into the hole, dropping into a light crouch with my gunblade in hand and at my side.

A strange clattering sound oozed from above.

The next moment, I felt something land solidly on my back. Wiry legs crawled over my body, their sharply pointed feet digging deeply into my flesh. Teeth bit at my head, chewing on my hair.

With a shout, I reached back with my free hand and felt around. Grabbing something round that felt oddly like a mask or a face, I dug my fingers into the holes within that solid structure and flung it wildly away.

The mask thudded into the wall, legs erupting from its underside splayed for a few moments as it peeled from that vertical surface and landed on the floor. Immediately righting itself, it turned, its masked head propping itself upright as it lifted itself on four spindly spider legs.

I dodged quickly as it spewed green liquid at me. The rock I'd been standing upon hissed and sizzled as the acidic fluid burned through it.

A wild charge put me boot-to-leg with the creature, my gunblade already halfway into its swing and my finger reaching for its trigger.

Webbing encased my wrist, bringing my swing to an abrupt halt. The momentum I'd tried to put into that motion brought me to my rear even as that threadlike rope was yanked backwards and upwards.

Yet another one of those spidery creatures hung from the ceiling, its trap being reeled to it by sharp front claws.

I covered my face, my gunblade clattering uselessly to the ground, as the one I'd been facing leapt at my head and sunk its sharp feet into my body again. A scream leaked from my lungs as its acid-coated teeth dug into my arm and it lifted its legs, scampering over me to get decent purchase, shredding my flesh without effort.

The shadow landed beside me, using his croquet mallet with its odd flamingo head to fire mystically conjured balls of energy at the spidery thing on the ceiling. "Drop, damn it!" I vaguely heard his voice cry.

Even as my vision began to fade, my blood leaking into a deep puddle under my body and my energy finally flagging completely, the sizzle of electricity tainted my ears and the scent of burning flesh assaulted my nostrils. A slight jolt ran through my body, piercing me where those spindly legs thrust their terminal points into me.

A faint pink light drifted through my black world. A tingle oozed through my veins.

"Whoo. Still with me," the shadow sighed, falling flat onto his bottom.

Grimacing, I slowly sat up. A grunt accompanied a hand darting behind me to keep me upright as vertigo nearly claimed me. "Took me by surprise," I groaned. "Damned good ambush."

"Hey, it can be expected. You're not exactly on your game right now. You haven't had any Metaessence to heal yourself since we got to this place," he muttered, laying a clawed hand on my shoulder before turning his attention towards the end of the hallway.

Yet another scrawled 'You're Next!' glowed before us, lit by fierce fluorescent light from the mysterious place around the corner we'd yet to journey to.

"_Man! All this just to introduce an ambassador."_

"Hm. I don't think that's what those messages are supposed to be for," I sulked under my breath. "There's got to be another meaning behind them."

Even as aquamarine eyes shined with confusion as they regarded me, a deep voice confessed, _"The ambassador is the Sorceress…"_

"…The Sorceress?" Could it be possible that she was behind those messages?

Or could it be a message from those who'd faced her…?

"Wonder what's over there?" I murmured.

"No way to know until we go," he replied.

"_Now's our chance. Come on! What are you waiting for? Rinoa might die!"_

Rinoa…? Could she be there?

"Who knows," I groaned. Perhaps she was there. Rinoa. The sorceress. Her knight, whose voice I'd heard earlier. If I were to face the sorceress directly… Would I have to go through Seifer?

…That's the way it goes as a SeeD. You can't choose your enemies…

"Let's find out," I sighed even as I pried myself off the floor and placed myself on my feet. A few moments of dizziness plowed over me, accompanied by a quick blackout and a staggered series of steps towards the nearest wall I could locate. Placing my hand on it, a chilled shudder creeping about my body as I felt the wet quality of the area I'd just touched.

When my stance finally stabilized and my sight completely returned, I glanced to my side. As I drew my hand away, I scowled as I saw the bright red blood staining my palm. The messages on the walls were fresh.

Stooping to fetch my gunblade, I ignored the wretches of my shadowy companion and instead stalked around the corner.

I hadn't been at all prepared for what I was to see.

A huge machine buzzed away behind a giant pane of glass, a door creaking open. A small child, clad only in pants and wearing a gag that bound his entire bald head, moaned pitifully around the leather straps crammed into his grimacing mouth, chewing fitfully with yellow-stained teeth. Looking around with huge and blank eyes, he hooted as loudly as he could before holding a hand before himself and clenching it into a fist. A fearful look and a wave of his other hand as if to stave off an attacker, he punched himself so solidly at he stumbled back a few steps.

An enormous steel vice thrust its way out of the back wall of the contained room, clamping itself lightly around the child's middle and placing him on a conveyor belt that swept him into a cylindrical device that was covered with gages as steaming relief valves. Metal doors clanged shut. A trap door swung open above that mechanism the boy had been carried into, dropping gears and iron pieces.

As the previously hidden back doors to that cylindrical machine swung open, one of the automatons my shadowy companion had taken down drifted out and was dumped unceremoniously by conveyor belt into some unknown recess.

By Hein… those things were once children…?

"Oh God," the shadow who ambled at my side whimpered.

"Oh, look there, Dormy! We have some visitors!"

"Tell me, Hare. Do they have tea?"

Turning sharply on my toes, I stared even as I brought my gunblade to bear. A moment later, it clanged impotently against the floor as it slid out of my fingers.

"I'll say, young man. You should flee before the Hatter arrives! I'm afraid he's gone quite mad."

The hare that spoke to me, suspended on a steel plate held on a pair of runners, was barely recognizable as a living creature.

A whirring set of gears construed half of his body, one metal leg hanging limply and one robotic arm twitching uselessly at a fleshy side. Eyelids stretched wide open so he couldn't blink, the creature's lower lip pulled to his chest, the rabbit nonetheless held a cheerful flippant tone in his voice as blood trickled down his cheeks from his eye sockets. Ears propping forward, his jaws moved, the lip grotesquely stretching as he spoke. "He comes for us at six sharp."

"Never misses a chance to deny us our tea," a voice whimpered from behind me with a stifled yawn overriding his proclamation. Turning, I stared once more.

The mouse, both legs mechanical and unmoving, lay flat upon an examination table. Small hands folded upon his furred gray chest, he stared through heavily lidded eyes at me, his bucked teeth parting as he yawned once more. The tail he sported slowly flicked back and forth, the center of it devoid of flesh and simply a display of bone and tendon connected to the next limp portion of the limb. Intestines draped casually across the table and the body upon it like thick red spaghetti noodles strewn carelessly upon a plate.

"You're a fucking mess," was the first thing to make it to my lips.

_How can you be so casual? I feel… sorry for him."_

Sorry for him…? For the mouse on the table? Or for….

Seifer, sentenced to death for an attempt on a president's life, condemned to pay the ultimate price for attempting to free a nation from the sway of an evil dictator?

Seifer….

…Feel sorry? Seifer would hate to hear that.

"Leon, I think we should help them," the shadowy creature that accompanied me whimpered softly. "I mean, if we can, that is. I think they could help us find the others… maybe they could help us escape from this place." A duck of his head accompanied a quiet grumble of, "I wish we could see the others again. I wish we were back at the gummi."

Think what you want. Reality isn't so kind. Everything doesn't work out the way you want it to. That's why… "As long as you don't get your hopes up, you can take anything. You feel less pain. Anyway, whatever wish you have is none of my business."

"_I know, but…."_

"Leon… you sure you're alright?"

Why do you ask that? Because Seifer is dead? I liked him… wasn't really a bad guy… He was one of us. Seifer… You've become just a memory. Will they…

Will they talk about me this way if I die, too? Squall was this and that. Using past tense, saying whatever they want?

"His medicine makes me so tired," the mouse muttered.

"So, why do you come to the Hatter's domain? _Tell me what SeeD is. Edea demands to know."_

"SeeD…" A code name, for Balamb Garden's elite mercenary force… SeeD… Combat specialists… …..? "Don't you already know?"

Large eyes stared unblinking at me. "I must admit I don't. Or is this a riddle? Dare say, it isn't a very good one. _After the Garden's gone, the SeeD hunt will begin. I'll be Edea's bloodhound and hunt down everyone of your kind. It'll be fun, Squall. Don't die on me yet."_

I staggered back, putting some distance between myself and that brown-furred batch of rabbit remains. "What's going on here?"

"_I dunno. At first, they were sayin' somethin' 'bout roundin' up the SeeDs, ya know? Now, everyone's either sidin' with the Gardne Master or the headmaster and fightin' everywhere, ya know?"_

The mouse behind me yawned loudly. _"DISTURBING."_

"_Disappointin' for the disciplinary committee. All our work for nothin', ya know?"_

"Why are SeeDs being targeted? And where's the headmaster? Is he safe?" I quickly inquired.

"_We got no clue."_

"Leon? What the hell's a headmaster? Make some sense!"

"I say, Dormy! I do believe this one's quite a ways off the deep end!"

I held my head, sinking to my knees, staring blankly at the floor before me.

"So, do any of you know how to escape this place?" the shadow's voice whispered from my side.

"If we did, dear boy, perhaps we might not be here!" the hare chirped. "We'd be off to a proper party, not one hosted by a madman."

"One where we'd get tea," the dormouse muttered.

"So this Hatter guy you mentioned… he did this to you?" the shadow inquired.

"Oh yes," the hare helpfully chuckled. "He holds us at his party, refusing to let it end. I doubt that anyone but he knows the way to leave his domain. If you wish to depart, then you'd best speak to him."

"But he is a cruel man these days," yawned the mouse.

"Speak to this Mad Hatter?" the shadow all but sniveled. "Gee, that sounds fabulous."

Great. I had to agree with that proclamation. Speak to the man who'd committed such atrocities. The man who was utilizing his diabolical machines to deform the children he held captive. The man who tortured his apparent guests.

"_As an expert Squall observer… He's thinking: what do we do now? Blah blah blah… If you think and worry too much, everything tends to turn bad, Squall. Why don't we just picture a brighter future."_

Because picturing a brighter future leads to bitter disappointment. It leads to hope. It leads to an illusory happiness that's so easily crushed by the hands of your foes.

"_Yeah, and that Ultimecia! We can't let that sorceress from the future mess up our world! Let's go kick her ass! We're SeeDs! We're here to destroy sorceresses, right?"_

Make everything sound so simple….

"_This is the scene where you swear your undying hatred for me! The tale of the eveil mercenary vs. the sorceress' knight… The fun's just started, Squall. Don't disappoint me now!"_

Even though the battle might not be anything I truly want….

"_So like… if you knew that your enemies were pure evil, you'd get more fired up to fight them, right?"_

…An enemy that is pure evil? Right and wrong are not what separate us and our enemies. It's different standpoints, our perspectives that separate us. Both sides blame one another. There's no good or bad side. Just two sides holding different views.

Aquamarine eyes stared at me. "You can't possibly believe that."

Oh… I'd spoken my thoughts aloud?

"_I'm scared, Squall. I don't wanna go back."_

"Whether or not you're scared, we have to go on… we have to accomplish our goal."

"_I should tell you this before I go. I was possessed out in space. There was a sorceress inside me. Ultimecia, a sorceress from the future. She's trying to achieve time compression. She's the only one who would be able to exist in such a world. She, and no other. As long as I'm free, she'll continue to use me to accomplish her goal. I… We can't let that happen, right…?"_

"It doesn't matter. It won't happen again. We'll do what needs to be done." With a scowl, I leaned over and picked up my nearly forgotten gunblade. Spotting yet another lever, I stomped over to it and gave it an easy pull. "Let's head out."

"We're actually going to hunt down the Hatter?"

Hatter…?

The shadow poked my arm with his claw. "Remember, Leon? The Mad Hatter?"

The hare and the dormouse stared at me even as I began to walk to the door. I could feel their gazes burning into my back. "Sure. The Mad Hatter. Got it. Move, shadow."

"Why, I do believe he's quite mad, Dormy," a voice chuckled from behind me.

"He must be mad, Hare. Otherwise he wouldn't be here," another replied.

I scowled even as I stalked right out of the door. Somewhere far off, a rumbling noise could be faintly heard.

Having no choice but to retrace our steps, we ended up back on that suspended bridge. Glancing around, I scowled. "There has to be somewhere to go. There was no way out of the machinery room where they were fucking over those kids. We haven't seen the Hatter yet. He's got to be here somewhere – especially if he promptly arrives every day to deny his shambled guests their tea. Plus that lever in their torture chamber had to have done something."

Skittering could be heard above us. With a scowl, I glanced down at the shadowy being beside me. "I suggest we run."

"I heartily agree," he said with a nod of his antennae-bearing head, his clawed hand tightening on his croquet mallet.

We took off, hearing the thumps of those masked spiders falling from the ceiling and onto the floor behind us. The scraping of their sharply pointed feet on the floor attempted to run after us, trying desperately to keep up.

Turning sharply at a corner that had previously been blocked off by a barred door, we put a decent amount of distance between us and our pursuit. With a snarl I turned mid-step and thrust myself forward, gunblade leading.

Barreling straight into one spider and shoving it back into its companion, the sharpened edge of my weapon dug into the smiling mask that constituted its head.

A grin crossed my lips as I yanked the trigger.

An explosion of smoke, a splattering of thick red blood and a childish screech flooded the air as both spidery beasts were decimated by the powerful shockwave that blasted along the gunblade's length. Lifting my weapon, I lapped at the liquid that stained my weapon. A feral grin turned my lips. "Cool," I muttered.

"Leon…?" the shadow nervously whispered.

"Let's find that Hatter," I curtly ordered before marching off down our new walkway.

Passing a strange marking on the floor that looked like a filled keyhole and passing through another set of doors, we came across a large net tethered to a wall across from yet another bloody 'You're Next!' warning. Upon further examination, I saw that it contained a large, still creature within its mesh folds, huge feathered wings mashed to heaving furry flanks with their feathers entangled in the wires that made up its makeshift prison.

Turning a large eagle's head, its beak parting, the creature heaved, "You. The people Caterpillar told me to bring. Surely, you must make haste."

"You're the griffon that captured us and brought us here!" the shadow at my side burst, his watery voice filled with something rather akin to rage. "I hope you intend to explain yourself!"

Giant eyes closing, the beast sighed and turned its head slightly. "Yes, I am the griffon. Properly, I am Gryphon. I brought you here because within this domain lays a threat to all of Wonderland."

"This Mad Hatter," I responded, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yes," Gryphon replied with the most vigorous nod he could manage in his tethered state. "Darkness has taken the Mad Hatter – once he was simply a crazed man with a taste for tea who ran parties with his friends the March Hare and Dormouse. Now his thirst for perfection in his research, his science and his inventions has driven him over the brink of insanity, blackening his heart and inviting darkness into his lands. He witnessed the power drawing pure darkness leant to the Queen's guardian, the Jabberwock. He wanted that power for himself."

"This darkness… does it take shape? Like me?" the aquamarine-eyed shadow questioned.

"That it does," Gryphon said, his eyes closing slowly. "Not only does it manifest itself into creatures like you at his table, it engulfed him until all that remained is a shadowy form of him. I fear the Hatter we knew, the pleasant riddling man, is long gone. Dual beings rove where once was one – one with a red emblem upon its chest shaped as a heart struck out, the other with an emblem resembling an inverted cross under its vest traced in gray."

"What the hell is that?" I softly asked, facing my companion.

"I truthfully have no idea." A few moments of silence passed as the shadowy creature glanced off to the side before muttering softly, "Sometimes when the heart is removed by the Heartless, the shell that is left which is devoid of heart will animate. The body with no identity, no heart. Nobody."

"I thought you said you didn't have any idea," I growled.

Glancing over, the shadow sighed. "Part of me doesn't. The part that does is… something I find distasteful."

"Whatever," I snorted. Turning back to Gryphon, I snapped, "So what is it you want us to do, then?"

"We've already been tasked with defeating the Jabberwock," the shadow inserted. "What more do you want?"

"_I want you to assist them and then evacuate."_

That's what we're already planning on doing, right…? …What's on your mind?

And why did the creature sound like Cid Kramer…?

Is that you, Cid?

Blinking, I stared as I saw the sweater-wearing man with his glasses caught in the net. "Headmaster!" I shouted, dropping my gunblade and lunging forward to tangle my hands in that netting and rip it away. "Hold still. I've got this, sir," I supplied with a nod. "I have a lot to report. I'll do so after I free you."

"_You can tell me later."_

But… You might be dead later… I had to free him now!

"_You just happened to show up just before the mission was to be carried out. They used you. The sorceress retaliated. Just as we suspected. No doubt, it was the sorceress who ordered the missile attacks. Something must be done to calm the sorceress' anger."_

"Wait a minute. That's just…" I started, my hands coming to a still against those sharp lines that stood between myself and the headmaster.

"_In order to do so, we needed to hand over those involved in the assassination to the sorceress. We had to show Balamb Garden's sincerity."_

I slowly backed away, my eyes wide.

It wasn't Cid Kramer in that net. It was one of the Garden faculty. One of the shumi.

"We need you to defeat at least one of the manifestations of the Mad Hatter. Alice can not possibly face both! The darkness incorporated in that with its red emblem is too powerful for her to overcome. If she were to attempt to break free of the madness that has taken her with the additional effect of darkness upon this Wonderland, she would certainly die."

Stumbling, I fell solidly on my rump.

…Not again. So much I don't understand. "Why me? I have enough problems as it is! Don't get me involved in this!"

"_I'm sorry."_

"Don't… Don't count on me."

Aquamarine eyes accompanied those of Gryphon in staring at me.

Stop staring!

Holding my head, I staggered to my feet, picking up my gunblade as I did.

"Leon, calm down! Let me help you," the shadowy form uttered as he approached me, one hand outstretched towards me.

I'm fine by myself now. I have all the skills I need to survive. I'm not a child anymore.

"Stay away. I'm leaving this place," I snapped. "I don't want to be here anymore! Fuck this!"

I charged away, barely catching upon the edge of my hearing that sharp Galbadian voice I knew so well shout, _"Y-You're going outside? You're crazy!"_ and the sound of Piet crying, _"Idiot! There's no way he can get back! He's insane!"_

I didn't care.

I had to get away.

All this talk of being depended on, being looked upon as a hero to defeat some horrible force that'd save a girl and a land, was driving me crazy.

I ran wildly down the hallway, barreling through anything that dared to stand in my way. My gunblade sang as it swung from left to right and back again, smoke pouring from the revolving chamber and flame dancing over the long brightly glowing blue blade. Whatever was before me exploded with every triggered strike, covering me in gore and blood and pieces of body and smoldering metal from demolished robots with their screaming children's voices.

Soon I crashed through a door that set me onto a giant table. A swirling green portal hovered above a chair. It was a considerable jump – glancing around, I noted giant sugar cubes floating in tea cups filled with hot tea that were just as high as a person could jump.

Screw that crap.

Instead, I took a long running start and jumped as far as I could – something grabbed onto my foot just as I'd left the flat table – managing barely to grab the edge of that portal. I easily hefted myself into its recesses.

Standing in the center of a wide and flat platform shaped as a clock's front and facing a large tower, I scowled. "What the hell?"

"_So, what do we do about HIM?" _Zell's voice queasily asked.

'HIM' happened to be a giant human being, a huge hooked nose and a top hat that reached for the heavens. A moth-eaten vest clung to a spindly upper body, its parted lapels giving a fine display of a tea-stained white shirt and brushing over the belt that held aloft a pair of black slacks. Dress shoes lightly tapped on the floor, each one nearly the length of my gunblade, the sound echoing fiercely around me. Leaning on a walking cane, skeletal arms crossed easily over its top, the person's thin lips curled with a sneer to display gleaming white teeth. Thin neck craning, he looked down upon me as a man would a bug and chuckled even as he lifted one gloved, elongated hand to tilt the hat he wore back upon his head, the large card that erupted from its side and displayed the fraction 10/6 fluttering slightly with the motion.

"We're supposed to beat that?" the shadow that had clung to my foot as I'd made my rather death-defying leap whimpered. "How?"

"_You need love and friendship for this mission! And the courage to believe it. It's all about love, friendship, and courage! I'm counting on you guys!"_

"Love and friendship and all that sounds corny…" I quietly muttered.

"_You think it'll succeed?"_

"We'll try."

"Well, what do we have here?" his voice chuckled through the dark sky that engulfed us.

"The Mad Hatter, I assume?" I steadily asked, any aspect of fear that I might have felt fleeing me.

"_Man, you look way too serious."_

Glancing down at the shadow, I stared.

Irvine was sitting at my side, his sniper rifle resting across his knees.

He was supposed to shoot… wasn't he…? And he was hesitating! I had to get him to shoot! "Kinneas!" I shouted, reaching down to jostle his shoulder. "Enough! Just shoot!"

"_I can't, dammit!"_

"Leon! Stop! I don't have a gun, for crying out loud…."

The being before us chuckles softly. "Foolish man. Why is it you come to my table? I'm sorry, but I have no seats for new people at my tea party. _So the time has come. You're the legendary SeeD destined to face me?"_

I blinked. Legendary SeeD…? Me?

Snorting, Irvine… no, the shadowy form rose to his feet beside me. "We're here to take out a Heartless. You. Alice needs the help, and we're here to provide."

"Oh truly? You wish to destroy me? How foolhardy. Why, I bet you know not even how a raven is like a writing desk, much less how to defeat a Heartless. _You're comparing ME to one of them? I ain't no monster. I'm the sorceress' knight. And look at you. Attacking like a swarm. You guys are the monsters."_

"We are _not_ monsters!" I shouted.

"…_Lowlifes. …Shameless, filthy wretches. How you celebrate my ascension with such joy. Hailing the very one you have condemned for generations. Have you no shame? What happened to the evil, ruthless sorceress from your fantasies? The cold-blooded tyrant that slaughtered countless men and destroyed many nations? Where is she now? She stands before your very eyes to become your new ruler."_

My tightened grip on my gunblade drew my companion's stare. "Shut up…."

"See? You know not how a raven is like-"

"THEY BOTH PHONETICALLY START WITH 'R'! What the hell does that have to do with anything?" I all but screamed.

The being before me blinked in surprise before scowling magnificently.

The image shimmered. Black wings spread. Feathers swirled around me as a tattooed face glowered at me with disdain, as fingernails painted crimson stretched towards me.

"…_SeeD…SeeD……SeeD…… SeeD, SeeD, Seed! Kurse all SeeDs. Swarming like lokusts across generations. You disgust me. The world wason the brink of that ever-elusive 'time kompression.' Insolent fools! Your vain krusade ends here, SeeDs. The price for your meddling is death beyond death. I shall send you to a dimension beyond your imagining. There, I will reign, and you will be my slaves for eternity."_

As her laughter rang across the night sky, I charged with a manic roar coloring my voice. My gunblade glowed brilliantly against the black air above, leaving a trail of blazing blue in my wake.

I was slammed heartily into the ground, my shoulder thundering with the force that had just been applied to it. Laughing brightly, the thing I was attacking shifted again.

Jade eyes narrowed, lips twisted in a manic smile, he beckoned to me with black-gloved fingers, his gray trench coat fluttering lightly around his body as he held Hyperion at the ready. _"Hah, I won't go down that easy. Show me what you got, Squall! Let me add another scar for ya!"_

Surging to my feet with a roar, I burst into motion, my gunblade swinging deftly towards my opponent. He went for an overhead slash with Hyperion – I dodged left, my feet quickly finding purchase and sending me out of the way of his attack in a bare moment's time. A quick pull of the trigger sent a roaring blast barreling from Lionheart's revolver chamber, flashing smoke and fire in its wake. The weapon surged violently with the explosive force applied to the blade, the vibration that makes its hit so deadly hyperaccelerating the gunblade and pulling my arm with it.

It struck flesh. I stared with horror in my eyes as the wound remained clean, not a single droplet of blood oozing from the gaping wound Lionheart had torn.

Raising my gaze, I glared at the face of my opponent even as the small form at my side charged with his croquet mallet in hand, stopping just a few paces from the reeling for before me to form one of those mystical energy balls and bat it with unerring accuracy into our enemy's face. As large hands raised to cover singed eyes and a howl of pain flooded my ears, the shadowy figure of my companion ducked towards his right to get in close and waylay the spindly giant's legs with the mallet itself.

The black sky seemed to pour onto the ground around us, inky darkness sticking to the clock face under my boots. It roiled and surged.

Then eyes began to appear in it, figures peeling themselves free of their raven sea.

"Heartless!" my aquamarine-eyed companion screamed, swinging his mallet about his stooped body to ward off the newest wave of would-be attackers.

Catching the dilemma, I twisted Lionheart in my hands and sprang into action, wild swings clearing troughs of enemies from my way.

A voice whispered in the back of my head. _"… You guys are fearless."_

Fearless? I don't think that's quite right. If you think too hard, you become lost… I think that's what everyone's afraid of…

Despite my fear, I would do what needed to be done. Coming to a quick halt, I focused my attention on a string of those foes that rested between myself and my one ally.

A spring into action, a recollection of how to do what I was about to do, a surge of adrenaline spawned from the excitement of utilizing a technique I'd not used since I was seventeen, a grin at the thought of finally using Renzokuken once again, a dash towards one of the 'Heartless,' an uppercut delivered with the sharp edge of Lionheart accompanied by a perfectly timed pull of the trigger decimated the first of many. A sideways cut with a trigger. A downward slash with a trigger. A leap followed by a bashing atop of another foe with a trigger. A swivel with a slash and a pull of the trigger. Another spring, another cut, another trigger. A duck under an attempted attack, a slash of the gunblade towards the heavens, a yank of the trigger. A surge upright, a jerk of the blade down followed by a neck-level slice, a final triggering. Eight foes were dead, their remains exploding upon contact with the gunblade, their black inky blood staining me and the land around me.

My toe barely made contact with the ground before I sprang to the air. Closing my eyes, I focused my energies on my gunblade. Lionheart would cut… Lionheart would slash… Lionheart would decimate. Lionheart would burn their black corpses from my path in a ring of fiery repentance. They would be consumed by the Fated Circle.

A quick mid-air spin and a slash of the glistening blue blade ripped the air, the distorted wave of energy bursting free of the vacuum the quick motion I'd put my gunblade through had created. Fire from the edge of the gunblade, generated by the swift and perfectly timed pull of the trigger, rode that wave distortion into my sea of enemies.

And before me they folded, black ink oozing and cloudy puffs of smoke bursting as the Fated Circle ripped gloriously through them. The smell of ash, of smoky remains, of burned flesh and coppery char assaulted my nose even as I landed with a graceful tap of my boots.

My companion, fortunately having escaped the Fated Circle by melding as a shadow can with the floor, rose again to quickly grab his mallet and dodge the pointed end of a cane racing for his tiny body.

I charged forward again, a wild grin on my lips.

There was no thought here.

There were no memories.

There were no voices, no ponderings, no puzzles, no dilemmas. This was _my_ world.

A world of battle, a world of violence, a world where honesty and truth are as easily seen as the weapon in your opponent's hand and the burning desire for your death plaguing their eyes. A world where everything is open and visible, where nothing hides under deceit or lies.

A world where there's nothing but life and death.

And for me, it would be _life_.

Instinct was all that lead me – there were no thoughts, there were no plans, there were no strategies. I simply lead with my gunblade, my natural extension. Lionheart, as much a part of my body as my own hands, crashed solidly into the body of my target. A harsh bludgeoning delivered by a cane was quickly countered by a sharp gash delivered from Lionheart's heated edge. A yank of the trigger, as natural as drawing breath and always perfectly timed, bathed us both in smoke and fiery embers. A blast of icy frost from the top of his cane, instantly responded to with a quickly delivered blast of a triggered gunblade strike to the shins. As he toppled, I took to the air with a graceful and simple leap.

Plunging my gunblade deep into my enemy's neck, I pulled the trigger once more, grinning madly as I felt the stone ensnared blade vibrate harshly in my hands, threatening to rip my fingers away with the force of its detonation. The creature I'd impaled screeched even as I pulled my gunblade free, a foot on either side of his enlarged head.

I was shocked when smoke billowed from that severed neck, slowly knitting the wound back together.

Scampering back five steps, I dropped into a ready crouch, thumbing the revolving chamber of Lionheart even as my companion approached in a swift run with his mallet raised high. As he was swiftly batted away with an awkward kick delivered by a gangly, barely stabilized giant, I sprang into action.

One hamstring cut with a trigger. One uppercut slashing open an elongated thigh, once more with trigger. A leap and a stab with trigger to assist in the cut to the lower back, the draw down to the ground painful and long. A final swing from left to right, right above the ground and cutting deftly through ankles, the blade pulled so swiftly by the vibration applied by the trigger that it nearly flew from my hands.

As he fell once more, I fell back a few steps and held my gunblade aloft. Burning energy surged through it. The heavens above me roiled, black clouds parting before the beam of light that rocketed from Lionheart towards the stars. With a roar I brought the energy blade of Blasting Zone crashing down atop the strewn form of my enemy.

With a chuckle he rose. A sweep of his cane sent me crashing into the clock tower at the end of the platform we fought upon.

I faintly heard my shadowy companion's voice screaming a name. I felt wet liquid slowly oozing down my cheeks as I lay face down on the cool stony ground. I felt my heart thumping slowly in my ribcage even as my vision left completely and my breath slowed to excruciatingly slow rates. A shallow breath drew liquid into my nostrils. A slight brush of my suddenly limp tongue upon my lips tasted copper. My head was fuzzy, my spine felt impacted. I couldn't feel anything below the base of my neck.

As everything faded, the cries of my companion and the tromping of giant feet softening into nonexistence, I barely detected a whispered voice surrounding me, encasing and warming me.

"_You're the best looking guy here. Dance with me?"_

My surroundings were no longer black. Light slowly oozed into existence, sprawling lazily across my pith world with purpose. A figure stood before me, faded and unrecognizable against a soft blue glow.

"_Let me guess… You'll only dance with someone you like. Ok then… Look into my eyes… You're-going-to-like-me… You're-going-to-like-me… Did it work?"_

A touch more detail. A fluttering long blue shirt. Thin, shapely pale legs. Dark hair cascading behind slender shoulders. Hands clasped behind a slim back. Fashionable black boots buried in a sea of green with other colors.

"_You look so down. Come on, Squall, how old are you? You're still a teenager. Why don't you act like one for a change?"_

Flowers. As far as the eye could see.

"_You were afraid of losing us? Is that why you kept your distance?"_

To tell the truth… I worry too much about what others think of e. I hate that side of me… That's why I didn't want anyone to get to know me. I wanted to hide that side of myself. I hate it. Squall is an unfriendly, introverted guy. It made it easy for me when people perceived me that way.

"_Squall… You missed out on all the good things in life. You've missed out on so much."_

Soft confessions so close to the stars, bathed in the light of a red moon. Each tendril of hair finally has detail. The delicate ribbing of that cotton garment becomes clear. The black bodysuit under the over-shirt and the miniskirt finally meets the eye.

"_I don't want the future. I want the present to stand still. I want to stay here with you…"_

As do I. Because… Even if you end up as the world's enemy, I'll… I'll be your knight.

"_I'll… Probably disappear."_

"Just stay by my side. I won't let you disappear!"

A quick smile turning full lips. A spread of angel wings. An inviting offering of a hand. My boots swam in flowers as I steadily approached.

"How about this… I'll be here…"

"_Why?"_

"The reason you couldn't find me was because we haven't promised yet."

"_Promised?"_

"I'll be waiting for you. If you come here, you'll find me. I promise."

… I'm not alone.

She looked so sad. Her smile fell. Her head hung as she shook it slowly. "Not yet," her soft voice murmured. "You have yet to find your heart again."

"No," I growled as the image began to fade, her hand sliding right through mine as I grabbed for it.

Everything once again became black.

…If I call out, they will answer.

"Where is everyone? Rinoa! Where are you! Rinoa! Zell! Irvine! Quistis! Selphie!"

My voice resonated in my skull. The darkness mocked me.

…Am I… alone? Rinoa? I want to hear your voice. Which way…do I go?

I can't make it back…alone. Rinoa? Am I… all alone again?

Where… am I?

Something was… tapping me.

I groggily opened an eye. Aquamarine eyes filled my view.

"_I am Ultimecia. Time shall compress… …All existence denied."_

My head shot up. I stared at the creature before me. Black wings spread. Arms uplifted. Silvery hair shining in the faint light that existed under a raven-pitched sky.

"_Reflect on your… Childhood…"_

Memories swam through my skull. Memories of an orphanage. Memories of children. Memories of a Garden. Memories of love….

"_Your sensation… Your words… Your emotions…"_

I struggled to my feet, my gunblade's tip digging into the ground as I used it as a lever to pry my body from its resting place.

"_Time… It will not wait…"_

I took a staggering step forward. A realization had finally washed over me.

"_No matter… …how hard you hold on. It escapes you…"_

This was all… a memory. Ultimecia had already fallen to my gunblade. The being before me… it was…

"_And…"_

Or was it a memory…?

Even as I attempted to focus on that battle, the details of it slowly slid away. A flicker, a flash of inspiration, a vague recollection of the very words that were hovering about me like butterflies, then nothing.

Something roiled in their place, reaching for me, begging for me. It asked for my devotion. It asked for my attention. It asked for my servitude. It asked for my body. It asked for my memories. It asked for my mind.

As each flicker of recollection surfaced, that boiling mass hungrily ate, stripping that memory away and gnashing it with silver teeth. Talons dug into my brain, tearing rifts that pained and throbbed. Energy hummed in my skull, promising victory over the creature that dared to defy my power and still had the audacity to stand before me.

A loud booming riot, a growl for obedience, a promise for blood to flow and battle to creep into reality, a prayer for hatred and agony to fall upon my body. A hissing proclamation of unending, undefeatable power.

A marvelous being slithering across the lobes of my brain, Garden and angel and woman and god rolled into one huge beast. A wild creature never meant to be touched by mankind. A furious screeching banshee with Garden for her skull, wings erupting from her eyes, body forever levitating as fused dagger legs remain pointed at the earth below. Dramatically fluttering cape hanging from that Garden's base to drape around shapely hips and pass before bared breasts, crimson against silvery violet body, crimson against golden Garden and white wings. Streams of every color imaginable surrounding the being as she moved, parting obediently as she flapped those steely white wings and ripped anew into my mind.

My head throbbing as if being pried apart from inside, I whimpered as I held my temple with my only free hand. A voice, a million screams for murderous genocide, pounded between my ears, seething and furious at having been denied for so very long, gracious and grateful at being able to be found after so much time, gentle and benevolent at the realization that her assistance could be needed. A laugh, a furious scream of rage, a cry of agony in regards to the close proximity of my person to the source of her true power.

She screamed at me to utilize her. She ordered me to junction her. She commanded me to summon her. She consumed every memory that flew across my mind eye, threatening to wipe my mind clean until my body was nothing but a brainless puppet unless I drew her into me completely and freed my soul to her beckoning. She ground her teeth, eliminating everything I could recall before the fight against the Sorceress Ulti… against the… against…..

I hurriedly junctioned her.

And then, I knew no more.

_-to be continued-_

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Once again, a few artistic liberties were taken with the layout of this region of American McGee's Alice. It made the story flow a little more linearly. I know you don't find Gryphon until you defeat the Mad Hatter and go into the clock tower, but tough beans. I needed it arranged like this for the story's purposes – if that upsets you, I do apologize.

And I heartily apologize for the length. First off, the story wouldn't stop until Leon's fall was complete. Secondly, I want to get out of Wonderland one year, and I can't afford to take tons of chapters from Leon's POV to work through all of this (it would have taken 4 cycles to complete). Third… I was typing to really good music, so it just kept flowing.

To make matters worse, this took an exceptionally unexpected turn at the end, too. Craptastic.

No, I'm not joking when I say that this story writes itself. All I provide is my knowledge of the characters and the fingers to type it. I didn't particularly want this end to this chapter, but that's what happened, so I'll just have to work with it.

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Review replies:

Melodious Flurry: (humble curtsey) Thank you so much for your compliments. They're very appreciated! I do try my best – while this fic's so chocked full of errors and typos its humiliating, I'm pleased to know that it's still entertaining. I'm also glad you got a kick out of Cid. He's so darned fun to type. And crazy stuff and Wonderland are synonymous with one another, neh? Heh. Thanks for the plushie! (grabs and stashes) Mwe heh heh. Another for my collection! (struts) Thanks for the review, and here's to hoping you like this newest chapter.

scarlettHuntress: Aw, thank you so much! I love writing Zack. Sometimes. Other times, he's annoying. (laughs) But enjoy him as long as you can – his days are numbered. (manic cackle) But hey! Closer we are to Zack going away, closer we are to mansex. Neh heh heh. Thanks again for reviewing, and thanks for your compliment! You guys make me blush.

Raz: (squeals delightedly) Thank you! Thank you for your compliments on Zack! It really means a lot to read reviews like that – those and critiques that tell me exactly what I've done are my most prized reviews. And thank you so much for professing that this is getting better! I'm trying my damnedest to ensure it doesn't run out of steam – I'm glad my efforts are paying off!

DarkStarPhoenix: (grins) Yeah, Zack's… chipper. Was in FF7, and I try to replicate that her. Ants with bayonets are a _huge_ pain in the arse in American McGee's Alice – I can't begin to tell you how many times those wretched guys lobbed me into stagnant water so I could be eaten by giant fish. (bows head in shame) What a way to die. Crap. Anyway, good luck on the rest of your exams! (arm pump) I'm sure you'll do fine. :)

Li the Twilight Knight: Thanks for reviewing! Yeah, they'll get out of Wonderland someday. Mwe heh heh. Sarcasm directed towards me, eh? Well, we'll see about that! (smirk) Yeh, Zack's a blast. Hasn't figured out he's Cloud yet – right now he's flailing about the fact that someone with a sick sense of humor got his head bleached. Silly SOLDIER. Yeah, bonus chapter's waiting for an appropriate time to be inserted. Neh heh. I heart them.

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All who review get my kitten Seiki! (takes a moment to pry her mangled Ansem plushie away from his tiny teeth, scruff the animal and flail him at the computer monitor, leaving the drool-coated plushie to wheeze "SUBMIT!") Oh, and flames are perfectly welcome, considering how butchered/warped/strange/degenerated this chapter ended up being. 


	42. Caterpillar

Let me start with – happy holiday season, everyone! BTW, I'm doing requests for the season. (Ava, if you're reading this, I'm 90 percent complete with part 2 of your drawing series, and will have them posted when we come back from our underway. Expect them around the 18th. Maybe the 20th, seeing as how I've got duty on the 19th) So if you want anything for Christmas, tell me and I'll try to accommodate you. ;P

And let's here a huzzah for being back to obeying my own regulations on chapter length for 'Behind Closed Doors.' That last chapter made me want to hurt myself.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, American McGee's Alice or Final Fantasy VII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 42  
The Gummi Expert – Caterpillar

"I've got'cha!"

I grit my teeth, the enamel grinding loudly as the stick I'd been chewing on had fallen beyond sight when I'd opened my mouth to scream. Reaching up with my dangling hand, I hurriedly clasped it around the wrist of the hand that was gripping my other limb. "Haul me up, fuck head!" I shouted, my feet kicking uselessly in the air.

See, it'd been like this for a long while now. Fucking lousy tree.

We'd finally managed to get our asses to the ledge where we'd seen that lousy rabbit. Climbing vines and swinging around like monkeys, each leap perilous and detrimental to my heart's continued health, drew us a few steps closer. Then we encountered the mushrooms.

Not those evil fucking fungi that tried to chew our fucking heads off. No, glowing fungi that oozed between blue and orange and pink and yellow that were like trampolines.

I won't hesitate to say it – this place is massively fucked up.

Anyway, bouncing on mushrooms to reach vines dangling way out of reach, swinging to rocky ledges so I can thump my ass on hard stone before having to dodge thorns tossed my way by big rabid fucking rose bushes with attitudes is not my idea of a fucking good time.

My companion seemed to think it was grand fun. Fucking spiky-headed idiot. If Cloud was properly Cloud I'd smack the ever-livid shit out of him and tell him to get back to his moping useless self.

Yeah, I'll admit that this 'Zack' guy's a definite improvement over Cloud's aggravatingly sullen self so far as getting some conversation's concerned. He's also Cloud's equal in battle. Hell, at times I'd almost say he's better than blondie the magnificent. He uses that Mako shit in his veins like a fucking pro. Guess he must've had more practice than Cloud. Zack has zero hesitations when it comes to leaping off ledges and bouncing off the sides of trees and cliffs to go smash Cloud's sword into something and make it go splatter.

But he's fucking retarded when it comes to common sense.

Why do I gotta be landed with all the idiotic ones? Yuffie, Leon, and now Zack. One hyperactive and stupid as an autistic two year old, one socially (and at times I'd venture to say mentally, though he'd kick my ass) retarded, and the last a fucking combination of the two. Yay, me.

See, Zack is fucking stupid because his dumb ass, flooded with Mako as it is, doesn't ever seem to remember that I ain't got the same affliction as him. He doesn't seem to understand why I feel faint whenever I'm starin' off the edge of a tree branch, staring down into swirling masses of clouds that lead to what's gotta be a fucking hard landing that has only one lousy small bouncy-mushroom between me and certain death. And seein' as how it's fucking hard as hell to keep bouncing straight up and down due to the curved surfaces of those bouncy-mushrooms, a guy's gotta land it just right to get a second bounce in to get to the fucking dangling vine or shitty little crumbly ledge a guy's trying to make it to. He thinks the jumping around is tons of fun and games, not the fucking toying with suicide that it actually is. And he looks at me funny when I yelp and scream whenever my foot slips and I go tumbling – 'least the dumb asshole's remembered to snatch my flailing self whenever I do fall so I don't have the opportunity to find out exactly what's at the base of this ridiculously large tree.

Have I mentioned how much I hate this fucking place? Yeah. I really hate this fucking place.

Almost makes me wish I'd gotten snatched with Crazy Bastard Leon instead of my little Heartless buddy. I'm certain short and Shadowy could've put up with Zack the brainless a lot better than myself.

To make things even more fun, every time we reach a ledge there's fucking insects waiting for us.

I swear, when we get back to normal size I'm gonna step on every godforsaken ant I see. And kick over roses. And stomp on ladybugs. Lousy ass-heads.

As Zack finally hauled me back onto the ledge my foot had handily slipped from, I growled and shoved him aside. Even as he tumbled back and hit his ass on the ground with a grin, I pulled my spear free from my belt and the strand of vine I'd tethered around my upper body to hold it flush to me while I swung around in the trees like a buffoon. "Sit yer ass down, fucknut. I'll take care of this."

"Take care of what?" he brightly asked, blinking at me owlishly.

Charging forward, I screamed my rage with trees, bugs and all of Wonderland as a whole as I plunged my spear's sharp head into the neck of one of those fucking Army Ants, sneering as its sword dropped to the ground and its mandibles clacked uselessly. Wrenching my weapon free, I stabbed at the body a few more times.

"Woah! Nice one, old man!" Zack merrily professed in Cloud's voice.

"One hit's all it takes. Ya just gotta figure out where to hit 'em," I growled. "Gaw, I could fucking use a cigarette."

"Then why don't you smoke one?"

I grit my teeth. "Because I only have one left, ass-clown. And I'm saving that as a fucking celebratory smoke for when we make it out of this rotten place."

"Got'cha," Zack answered even as he started walking up the small hill that lay before us.

Grunting, I used my spear as a walking stick and dragged myself up after him. I sighed as we crested the hill and set our eyes on a small rushing stream with a few stones poking precariously out of is speeding waters.

"Hey, I wonder if there's any more of those silly fish in there," Zack mused.

"I really don't wanna find out," I sighed.

Sure enough, those fucking fish we'd been dealing with that have those really sharp fucking teeth that ever so handily dig into a guy's skull when he's tryin' to snatch a drink of water jumped around. A couple of 'em decided to spew acid at us.

A mere second saw Zack and me behind a stone, grumbling.

"So, we just hack through them all. Give me a few minutes. I can have them out of our way," he professed, looking almost warily at his sword.

"Don't worry 'bout it flyin' apart. Cloud wallops the shit out of that damned thing and it ain't broke yet. I don't think yer gonna," I snorted.

"Alright then. We'll see how many I can get down."

With a grin and a war cry, Zack burst around the corner. A fish screeched – then Zack yelled, his voice burbling and splashing ringing through the air.

"Aiiiii!" I heard his voice cry right before I heard a torrid splash.

Idiot. Bet he fell in the fucking river.

Picking up another twig and shoving it into my mouth, I chewed at it fitfully as I planted my ass on the ground.

Took the moron a good half hour to get back to me, his spiky blond hair dripping and his clothes still damp. "Woah. That water moves a lot faster than I suspected," he said with a sheepish laugh and a grin. "Gotta be more careful this time!"

I groaned as he charged out again. Fucking lather, rinse, repeat.

"There's an ugly name for those who do things the hard way," a gravely voice hissed from nearby.

Looking over, I sneered at the Cheshire Cat. "Tell me about it. Hey… didn't I ask ya to look over those fucking nincompoops that got themselves snatched?"

The skeletal cat winked one of his sickly yellow eyes at me, his red gums showing as his smile widened and his flat white teeth ground together. "In the funhouse domain of the Mad Hatter, my assistance has already been provided. With recent developments, they have no further use of my words."

My eyes narrowed as I looked at the scraggly beast. "You mean they're alright?"

Tattooed brows furrowing as that grin twisted into something more sinister, the Cat's head lowered as he ducked his skinny neck down. Claws twisting into the ground, tail lashing wildly, he ground those teeth tightly. "The trial of the Hatter will be one they survive. Be prepared for your meeting with them, provided you reach the Caterpillar's sanctuary."

I huffed as the Cat faded even as Zack showed up once again.

"Well, third time's a charm," he said with a grin as he started to walk back out.

Reaching over, I grabbed his trailing red cloak and yanked him to a halt. "Knock it the fuck off, Zack. Let's just barrel past them."

"Where's the fun in that?" he whined.

"The 'fun' is getting to the fucking Caterpillar this god damned century, retard! C'mon. We're not here to lollygag. We're here to fucking get to this guy so he can send us to meet with Leon and the Shadow. We've gotta get to this Jabberwock and get off this fucking world."

With a destitute sigh, his shoulders slumping, Zack huffed. "Fine, fine. Steal my thunder," he lamented.

"Right. Now let's go!"

We charged as one back out to the stream, jumping as quickly as we could from rock to rock.

Fucking Mako bastard makes the shit look easy.

Me? I fell flat on my face when I dove headlong off a rock rather than let my foot complete the slide it was tryin' to accomplish to pitch me into that swiftly moving river and plunge me over the waterfall Zack played in twice.

So it was Zack who got the rose bush that sprang out of the ground on the shore we'd landed on and proceeded to pummel it into fertilizer.

"Um, Cid?" I heard his voice quietly question even as I finally managed to regain my feet and wipe the dirt off my face.

"What is it now?" I groused as I plucked one of the lucky thorns that'd managed to hit me from my side.

"The shadows… they're moving."

Facing the direction he was staring in, I gulped.

Sure enough, the shadows were roiling away. Just like they'd been over the Planet when I'd flown over it in the _Highwind._

Just like they were in Rocket Town when I'd returned to get Shera.

Just like they were moving over her corpse even when I got into the gummi and made my selfish getaway.

My spear dropped from my limp hand, clattering noisily to the ground. My knees gave out, landing me on my ass on the ground.

Shera….

Why could I see her bein' washed over by the critters in front of me?

Already dead. Already deprived of her heart.

Dead eyes, staring at me, begging me to have shown up just five minutes earlier to save her.

Next thing I knew, one of those Metaessence containers was walloped right against my skull. I glared in Zack's direction even as he gave me a thumbs-up, his feet still straddling the remains of a giant decapitated Army Ant and his sword held loosely in his hand.

Fucking hell. Rubbing my head, I got to my feet again. With a scowl on my lips, I glared at my spear even as I stooped to pick it up.

So the Shadow twerp was right. Not just the damage, but the amount of time we spent in Wonderland was eating at our sanity. Because I was able to keep the amount of wounds I got in battle to a bare minimum all this time, the effects on me were negligible. However, with the exorbitantly long time we'd spent in this damned place, those effects were comin' regardless. One hit was all it took now to send me cascadin' into depression that'd stop me in my tracks?

Fucking hell.

Which meant that it'd probably take a fucking miracle to get Cloud back to bein' Cloud. That miracle would probably be leaving Wonderland.

Made me wonder about Leon and the Shadow.

"Hey! Some help here?"

Shit. Just noticed Zack getting his dumb ass buried in Heartless. With a snort I gathered my spear into both of my hands and charged in.

Nice thing about this area of Wonderland – none of them damned tough to mash Heartless bothered showing up. Maybe it was 'cause this place was filled with enough nightmarish horror on its lonesome – maybe those things we were fightin' actually assisted in keeping the Heartless population down. Don't know, don't particularly care. Life is nice with no fucking Darkballs or Wyverns. All that popped up here were Neo-Shadows, Shadows and a couple of those obnoxious trumpet guys, the Crescendos. Mashin' 'em was a bit of fun.

A few simple slashes with my spear, a piercing thrust or two, a swift kick to one's face that landed it right into one of those eat-'em-all mushrooms and the thick population was quickly diminished. Zack finally removed his head from his ass and swung his sword like a champ.

"Gaw! Why is it those things pop up at the most inopportune moments?" the spiky-headed twit groaned.

"Because they're fucking Heartless. That's what they do," I answered with a snort. "Now, where the hell'd that fight take us?"

I looked around. We'd battled our way right into a big clearing. Ladybugs zipped around overhead.

"Oh crap," Zack sighed as he looked up.

"Yep," I replied even as I saw a veritable armada of them approach from beyond a huge wall of grass stalks with those fucking exploding acorns they love droppin' on a guy's head.

We took off running, heading right towards yet another fucking giant tree, bypassing a rose that tossed its thorns fitfully at us and a big damned daisy sitting in a pristine little clearing. Zack burst ahead of me with a flash of Mako-enhanced speed.

"Geronimo!" he shouted even as he leapt. It was then that I realized there was a cliff directly in front of me.

"Fuck!" I screeched as I followed, noticing at the last moment when I began to plummet that there was a vine dangling from that giant tree's limbs. Grabbing wildly for it, I managed to snag it with my fingers just in time to keep myself from barreling down yet another bottomless abyss.

What the hell's up with this fuckhead Alice and her goddamned bottomless fucking pits all over this fucking Wonderland? I wanna find this twit and smack her upside her crazy damned head.

"Over here!" Zack shouted, waving wildly. "There's a hole we can hide in!" he said, pointing and jumping around to clarify his statement.

I swung wildly on my vine, grimacing as an acorn brushed right past my foot and careened down into nowhere-ville. With a gulp and a grimace I released my vine.

"ARGH!" I screeched even as Zack's hand jutted out and grabbed my waistband, hauling me with zero dignity onto solid land. Without so much as a pause for breath he flung me towards that hole he'd noted.

It was once I'd barreled into it that I noted that it was a tunnel. "Where the hell…?"

"I don't know, but we'd better run!" Zack said with a wild grin on his face. "Those Ladybugs are approaching with the biggest damned boulder I've ever seen."

"Fucking goddamned fabulous, those bitchtastic whorefucks! I'm gonna fucking snatch 'em outta the fucking air and pull their fuckin' wings off when I get back to normal!" I screamed even as we took off as one.

A huge thundering sound resounded behind us. A thud, a crunch, and the deep guttural grind of stone crashing and rolling through the tunnel chased us.

"Holy smokes! Where the hell's Sephy when you need him? He'd cut the thing in half!" Zack cried out from my side as he looked over his shoulder into the tunnel behind us. "Speed it up or you're gonna be smashed!"

I didn't bother looking back. Instead I just grimaced so hard that my twig snapped between my teeth and poured as much of my energy reserves into my legs as I could. My lungs straining desperately for air, my muscles burning and a stitch forming in my side, I tightened my right hand on my spear and ran as quickly as possible. Not bothering to slow, I just prayed that my feet stayed steady as we ran single-file, Zack following, across a bridge made of the bones of some long-dead critter. He caught right back up, staying at my side as soon as we were in a proper tunnel once more.

Then I fell flat on my face when my foot contacted ice.

Zack grabbed me by the back of my shirt and hefted me along, his Mako-infused self able to somehow keep his footing. He danced across it with the grace of a crack-addled rabbit, continuing to run without setting me down through the tunnel we had before us. A crunch, a crash and a splash resounded behind us – that rock pro'lly just went smashing through the icy river we were on.

Without slowing, he ran right for the swiftly approaching ledge before us – a death-defying leap set us on a snowy little platform, right next to a floating icy-lookin' wand.

The Cheshire Cat smirked at us as he faded into view and gestured towards the stick with a clawed front paw. "Withering cold incapacitates an enemy more than deep wounds, but winter does not last forever."

"Hey, looks like another thing that could help our li'l Heartless friend if we meet up with him again," I muttered, curling my left hand around it.

"No time for chat! Time to run!" Zack professed.

I was about to question him when I noted that the icy boulder had actually been crashing down another path to reach us. With a gulp I staggered to my feet.

"Hold on!" Zack cried out, wrapping an arm around my middle and hefting me easily over his shoulder.

I would've screamed at him for daring something this degrading if I wasn't watchin' a giant fuckin' boulder come tearing after us while he ran down ice, leapt over crevices and jumped over air-gushin' geysers with speed I'd never be able to match, barely keeping ahead of our inanimate pursuit. With a huff as it finally careened down a crevice into nowhere, he put me down. Then as I was busy turnin' myself around, he quizzically asked, "Who're they?"

'They' just happened to be a big damned caterpillar and that fucking white rabbit.

Why, there _are_ some powers that be that like me in this cracked out land!

"Listen up, you guys," I huffed as I approached, spear in one hand and wand in the other. "We need to talk."

The rabbit cocked his head. "If this concerns Alice, the Caterpillar already has informed me. You've certainly taken your sweet time!"

"Well, that's a fine fuckin' how-d'ya-do!" I snapped.

The Caterpillar upon its giant mushroom took a deep draw from the hookah in its hands and breathed a smoky ring at me. I happily inhaled the scent, contemplating whether or not I should spear it through its fuckin' head and take that device away to relieve my poor nicotine deprived self. Gaw, I needed a smoke….

Then it began to speak, its voice clear and masculine. "You are here to assist Alice in her quest to save herself, are you not? The Cheshire Cat has already boasted your goals to us."

"As you already know," the White Rabbit interjected, "the heart of this Heartless invasion can be tethered to the Jabberwock. The wicked Queen of Hearts thirsts for power, and her guardian sought to bring it to her – through his journeys in Alice's madness-twisted Wonderland, he found the might that lay within pure darkness brought by those without hearts. Sacrificing himself to their ways in order to solidify their foothold in our Wonderland, the Jabberwock is the anchoring evil that keeps them attached to this realm. Defeat him, and you will drive away the link that allows those creatures to continue to come to our land."

Breathing a smoky ring, the Caterpillar nodded. "Only then, without the added weight of darkness upon her soul, will Alice have a chance to regain her sanity. Only then will she have the ability to reach her journey's end and repair our desecrated Wonderland."

"But you must hurry! Already you've wasted so much time!" the White Rabbit lamented.

"Well, fuckin' excuse the hell outta us," I snarled.

"We'll happily oblige! Can you just send us on our way? You're the one that created those other portals, right?" Zack blathered at my side.

"Quite right," the Caterpillar sighed. "If you feel you are prepared to face the source of the Heartless in this Wonderland, then I can accommodate you."

"Let's get this over with," I bit. "I want my fuckin' gummi and I want outta this fuckin' place as soon as possible. Just do me a favor – you took Leon an' our li'l shadowy traveling companion away from us, so you make sure they get back to us, right?"

"It will be as you ask," the Caterpillar affirmed with a nod. "Now go, and may luck be with you. Strength to you so you may complete your task." Taking one last long draw from his hookah, he breathed heavily at us.

We were bathed in smoke, then in horrid heat.

Zack and I looked at each other with morose frowns as we surveyed our fiery new surroundings, watching lava flow in rivers and devilish imps pour over the rocky pillars that made up the ground.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies: 

Kitty Kyinski: Aw, but late night reviews are some of the most fun! Thank you so much for reviewing – I tried to get you my kitten for being the first reviewer, but he refused to be pushed through the monitor. Oh, and for your assumption, if I had a giant gong I'd ring it to celebrate how correct you are. Yeah, the ultimate GF is all nicely junctioned up. Next chapter should be interesting. Hope you liked this one, BTW!

scarlettHuntress: Such a flatterer! (flush) Thank you so much. Oh, why I haven't gotten 500 reviews? A) I'm not one of the 'famous' fanfiction authors. B) I write stuff that's feasibly canon, not high school AUs. What can I say? I'm so far out of high school that I don't remember most of its idiosyncrasies. (sheepish laugh) Oh! And C) I try like heck to keep everyone in character instead of making them gooby for reader pleasure? I guess that one could count. But anyway, yes. Crazy, crazy Leon. Leon's brain went kaboom in quite a spectacular manner. Hope you enjoy the results! And thanks again for reviewing!

ChibixLeon: Thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked the last chapter. The continual flashbacking was a pain in the ass. I'm glad the effort found appreciation! Well, glad you liked the licking blood scene. XD I think those're cool, hence why I write them. Save a seat for me beside you at the psychiatric clinic, neh? (laughs) Wish I could throw you a Leon plushie, but the only ones I've completely sewn are Heartless (and I'm about 50 done with my Ansem plushie, who will NOT be available for distribution). Oh well, at least there's always virtual ones. Hope to see you in a couple chapters! (does a 'smut dance,' her version of the 'rain dance,' praying for an earlier coming of the chapter she lusts to type)

DanteMoon: Thanks for the compliment! Here. (virtually tosses over duct tape) That'll fix your brain. It's done wonders for mine! Neh heh heh.

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(tosses the Ansem plushie into her washer machine, pours detergent on him and throws the machine into an elongated wash cycle) If he were available, he'd scream something about 'submit' in regards to submitting a review. (burbled words ooze via soap bubbles from the laundry load) See? Toldja. 


	43. Eden

Alrighty. One final post before we go underway – we'll be cruising onboard ye auld aircraft carrier of mine until later this month ('round 'bouts the 18th) so expect nothing from me until then. I'm going to try to tackle the next Sora chapter. I might get around to finishing up Wonderland. I'll be finishing one pencil sketch I've been dragging my ass on. And I might get the next chapter of 'Journeys of a King' and 'Bloodbound' finished, just 'cause.

Warm fuzzies ahead! Actually, very NOT warm fuzzies ahead. Eden is all sorts of royally fucked up if you really think about what that Guardian Force makes a character capable of. I love the dark and twisted capacities of Final Fantasy VIII.

Mwa hah hah.

Only complaints I have for this chapter – ff . net doesn't support multitudes of fonts, so I had to use italics for certain parts whereas I'd prefer to use a different text style. Oh well. And jeez louise, is that damned summon impossible to describe… (holds head)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, American McGee's Alice or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 43  
The Heartless – Eden

I'd swallowed down a bout of nauseous terror when I'd witnessed Leon being hit so hard by the Mad Hatter's cane that he flew straight into the clock tower, his head making a sickening cracking sound as he hit it. When he'd flopped off of that vertical support a second later, I ran to his side to ward off those few Heartless that remained in the arena. They'd not have the opportunity to attack him while he was down if I had anything to say about it.

By the time I actually reached his side, though scant seconds had passed he was already bleeding profusely from the back of his skull. Ichor pooled under his face, bubbling as he breathed it in and out of his nostrils with sluggish draws of air. His slightly parted lips were stained with the red fluid.

I was panicking. I poked him wildly, praying to whatever deity would hear the cries of a Heartless such as myself for Leon to open his eyes.

"Such a fool," a raspy voice hissed. Lifting my eyes, I stared as the Hatter slowly peeled himself off of the ground, the wounds Leon had delivered slowly stitching back together.

Fabulous! How do you defeat something that heals like that?

I know that, even without a Keyblade that leaves permanent wounds by disrupting the Heartless' ability to rearrange their shadowy construction around their injuries, if enough harm is delivered swiftly enough the Heartless can be defeated. Provided there's not time for it to wind its dark construction back together, it will permanently fade, its essence delving back into the darkness of Kingdom Hearts to rest beside its lost heart forever. But as it stood there was no way for us to inflict the kind of damage needed quickly enough to bring this foe down.

It was then that I realized that this was a test – if we couldn't bring the Hatter down, it was likely that we'd have no chance against the Jabberwock. We'd be stuck in Wonderland forever; we'd be slain if we were lucky, forced to exist in this crazed land if we were not.

"You would hope to defeat me?" the Hatter chuckled, lifting his cane into his hands and steadfastly approaching us.

Leon's head shot up out of the thick puddle of his lifeblood that had stained his face, droplets of that fluid dripping off the tip of his nose and from his chin even as it oozed down the back of his neck and refreshed the red-stained coloration of his shirt.

"You have not the capacity. You have no Keyblade," the giant Heartless before us sneered.

"Maybe not," I replied, "but if we damage you hard and quick, you can't heal!"

"You have no prayer of accomplishing that feat," my enemy responded, his walk becoming steadier with every step.

Leon's hands rose to grip at his temples even as his teeth ground together and he whimpered.

He'd been doing a lot of that lately; ever since we'd been dropped by a hastily retreating Gryphon through a ceiling and into that cell Leon had regained consciousness in, he'd been having episodes of apparent pain. I feared that Wonderland was taking its final blows at his remaining sanity.

When he opened his eyes, I took a step away from him.

His eyes were no longer silver.

They were opalescent.

Then he parted his lips, his words a soft hiss upon the air. _"You dare believe you can strike me down?"_ he whispered.

If I still had a bladder, I would have pissed myself. As it was, I felt whatever constitutes the insides of a Shadow Heartless curdle and race around within me, the urge to vomit overpowering even though I had no mouth to make that action possible.

The voice that had leaked from his throat, while quiet and diminished, still seemed to boom with unending power. Everything became silent when he'd spoken, that voice a commanding presence that could not be outdone.

It was the voice of a god. It was the vocalization of a destroyer. It was the whispered promise of the angels of apocalypse.

That voice wasn't his. That voice wasn't Leon's!

Even the Hatter seemed surprised, stopping his steady progression. His cane made a horribly loud clonk as it sharply struck the floor. Gripping the top of that walking stick tightly, he narrowed his eyes even as the top of his hat popped open, the lid of that towering article swinging back on previously unseen hinges. A mechanical hand burst from its top, holding aloft a teapot.

I would've thought it ridiculous if this land hadn't taught me that even the most silly of things can kill a guy.

Pointing an elongated finger at my partner, the tip of it swinging back and missiles firing out of it, that hand in his top hat hurled its teapot in synchronous harmony with his other attack. My instincts taking over at the most opportune moment, I dashed away and flung myself a good distance from the projected area of impact of those missiles.

Leon simply stood there, a sneer taking his lips.

I lost sight of him in the resulting cloud of green gas and orange flame that enveloped him. The Mad Hatter laughed, his voice loud and booming and mechanical and screeching even as the darkness that his Heartless body was crafted of finally completed repairing the damage we'd inflicted on him earlier.

My knees quaked as I stared at my foe. Alone, there was no way I could defeat him.

_"Such paltry attempts. Such limited power. With such pathetic abilities, you pray to destroy the embodiment of all rage? You wish to decimate the conglomeration of all sorrow? You hope to demolish the sum of all horrors? Addled imbecile."_

I turned my head, staring with as wide of eyes as my skull was capable of bearing at the center of the residue of that explosion.

Pale skin gleamed, unmarred by any wound, unscratched and untouched by fire. Clothing hung from it in shambles, a completely blood-coated shirt's tendrils caressing a shapely body dusted across the chest and back by light brown hair, leather pants shredded below the knee and torn across the thighs barely covering whatever underwear he might be wearing, boots splattered with who-knows-what staining their black leather. Long locks of brown hair moved softly in the gentle breeze that brushed around his body. Opalescent eyes flashed, iridescent lightning raging across consuming pupil-lacking irises.

"I-Impossible!" the Hatter screeched, reeling back a step.

I had to admit that I agreed heartily with him.

Those eyes flashed in annoyance as Leon began to approach our giant Heartless foe, 'his' voice a soft hiss. _"You shall pay for your insolence. You shall suffer for your tomfoolery. I shall rip you. I shall hurt you. I shall break you. I shall demolish you. I shall tear your innards from your body and savor their flavor. I shall devour you, and you shall empower me to extirpate this world."_

Grabbing my mallet, I charged towards where Leon was standing.

He was approaching the Mad Hatter without his gunblade, his eerie voice snarling threats he could in no way accomplish. Not against the Mad Hatter; not against a Heartless could he hope to succeed without some serious firepower!

_"Insignificant victuals. Witness true might."_

Leon slowly dragged a hand before him through the air, then faded completely from view.

Something in my makeup screamed that it'd be a very, very extraordinarily bad idea to stick around. That something, my survival instincts, had yet to fail me – I unerringly obeyed them. As quickly as I could, I dove behind a clock tower, gripping to its vertical construct with my claws and hanging over an abysmal drop into unending sky.

Good thing, too.

Seconds later, the pith sky shined, a single blindingly bright point of light beaming through that thick inky mess that was the night air and brilliantly illuminating the Hatter's stunned and motionless body. Then, black as the shadows that constitute the makeup of Heartless such as myself, a pool of darkness began to spread from under the Mad Hatter's feet. I almost danced in place as it enveloped the entire area, sprawling under and over and around and _through_ everything in sight until all was uniform in pitch.

An explosive bang came from above. Looking up, I felt uncontrollable fear coupled with uncontained awe wash over me.

Dark clouds of black in that raven sky whirled madly around a form I could in no way begin to comprehend, much less describe. A huge floating disk, golden scrollwork with green and purple and yellow and blue lights glistening from a dark purplish tone that filled the space between the delicate latticework crafted by that golden coloration. Upon the front of that odd glowing multicolored halo, a strange protrusion rather like a nose with two huge white wings bursting from either side of it, razor sharp feathers slicing through the swirling clouds. From the center of that halo, suspended by a thick purple cylinder that seemed to be some sort of neck, hung a woman's body. Silver arms reached back into that halo, vanishing into it where the elbows would be. Purple breasts gleamed, bare and pert before the world. A thin silvery abdomen lead down into a flare of silver hips, purple thighs fused together to create not paired legs but rather a long pointed spear, thick and round at the flare of the womanly hips and narrow and deadly upon its termination. From purple that spear faded into white, intermittently cut with bands of blue, purple and brilliant yellow before ending once again in white. From the body's shoulder blades hung a pair of opalescent wings, drifting down towards the earth, these almost soft in comparison to those harsh ripping beasts that kept the form aloft. A pair of giant round protrusions erupted from the underside of the halo at those points where the womanly arms pierced it, thick inverted cones whose sharp white points jointed the termination of that body in threatening the earth below. From those two protrusions hung a long crimson cloak that fluttered softly against the breeze those wings that flapped lazily created. Golden rays of light burst from the halo before that neck and those breasts, piercing the darkness it itself had created.

As said, impossible to properly describe. It was like looking upon a goddess, a woman, a weapon of ultimate destruction and trying to adequately do it justice with language. One does not put the beauty and horror of a deity into words – this being seemed as a deity itself. How does a person ever portray ultimate horror and ultimate pulchritude?

The ground underneath the Hatter, indiscernible from the rest of the area we inhabited, pulsed eerily. Flashes of color spread from under his feet in rings – first blue, then green, then yellow and red and purple before starting again at blue. The pulsing rings slowly faded away, their color leeching into the ground to shimmer in waves and swirls even as gray lines oozed into being and swiftly conjoined to form a grid across the entire land. Those wavering lines continued their soft pulsing, shifting colors resolutely in the same pattern they'd displayed as rings. The entire area – ground, air, clock tower, breath – matched that pulsing wave, leaving only the Mad Hatter, myself and that majestic being in the sky showing our own unique coloration.

The grid curled. Space itself seemed to bend to the creature that hovered above. The Hatter, still standing upon the ground, was swept above the huge halo that dominated the heavens.

White light burst from the top of that halo, forming a huge cylindrical prison around the inverted Hatter. Mystic symbols, a six sided star with symbols in each triangular shape encompassed in a series of circles crafted of individual runes, formed at the base of that column and glowed brilliantly, its white and yellow and greenish tinged glare blinding and yet impossible to turn away from.

Yet another series of runes was forming far above and beyond those barricaded by the clouds. The mad whirling of the atmosphere, the gentle fluttering of that crimson cape seemed oddly enough to slow.

Everything seemed to be cascading to a halt. My claws slowly dug their way more firmly into the side of the clock tower.

Then, that gentle column of light that surrounded the Hatter solidified into a white spear of harsh, murderous white and blasted towards the heavens. Color shattered across the entire atmosphere. Air raced away. I felt my entire body being dragged with the pull of escaping wind – tightening my grip on the wall I clung desperately to, I kept myself firmly in place even as loose rocks and rubble kicked up during our fight against the Mad Hatter blasted at horrible velocities into the sky. The brilliance that was the regal entity that hovered above me slowly faded from view, its massive bulk entirely unaffected by the excessive power that it had just displayed, its position unchanging despite the irresistible vacuum its ejection of the Hatter had created. Even as I felt the last of the breathable air in my area rush away the creature faded away, the sky slowly oozed back together to heal the rift that divine being's arrival had torn through it and the air that all living, ordinary earth-bound creature require to survive flooded back into the area with a resounding crash.

Leon slowly faded back into view right where he'd been standing when he'd swept his hand before his face and disappeared. A smile slowly took his lips as he turned those odd, glowing eyes of his to the heavens above.

An orotund explosion poured from above, accompanied by a horrible flash of bright white light surrounding a seeping pool of black ink.

I cringed, my claws digging more harshly into the stony wall I clung to as the Mad Hatter fell from the very sky above and was dashed errantly into the hard ground. His Heartless frame was broken, shattered, twisted and deformed, every limb that he carried warped errantly around. His eyes were wide and wild, staring with horror at the man who stood with a confident smirk upon his lips.

I did nothing but stare, my eyes becoming even larger as he slowly approached.

That slow approach leaked into a light jog, then into a run.

Even as the Hatter desperately tried to pull himself from his crater and escape the mad creature that barreled towards him, fear finally overcoming him, Leon leapt onto his sprawled frame.

Hands digging into the Heartless' shattered frame, he tore and ripped with unimaginable strength. Cracking and rending noises flooded the air as he tore the Mad Hatter limb from limb.

Plunging his right hand into the soft belly of the Hatter, he sneered into the creature's face. _"I hold true to my word. I shall devour you. You shall empower me."_

The Hatter screamed as Leon lifted a clenched fist, that held in his hand wriggling and writhing even as he shoved it into his mouth and chewed.

I fell from my place, barely managing to land on a protrusion of ground. My knees hit solid land, my hands following scant moments later, my eyes staring at the crumbled rock before me.

The Hatter's pained, terrified screams roared through our arena as more tearing, more ripping, more chewing accompanied them.

He was eating the Heartless alive….

"Tell yourself, I've seen worse in Kingdom Hearts. Prevarication, in this instance, may help."

I glanced over at the Cheshire Cat, its faded form seated a good distance away atop one of the clock towers.

"But… I've never seen worse. Even there. At least, not that I can recall," I quietly muttered, more to myself than to the fading creature that was supposedly guiding us.

Shadow fell over me. Quivering in terror, I looked up.

Black ink slowly hissed as it faded from relaxed hands and muscular forearms. Shadowy tendrils of black leaked from a blood-stained t-shirt and a stubbly chin. Lips curled to flash pearly white teeth.

Glancing past, I shivered with repressed revulsion as I set my eyes on the fading remains of the Mad Hatter – the Heartless had been… _consumed._

_"This realm… this domain… it is still beyond my reach. Another holds it – another who would dream of their power being as grand as my own. I will find them. I will devour them. I will take their might and make it my own. And with their strength, I will devour this world. Lead me to this world's ruler – expedite my journey. I am famished."_

I stared at Leon; I stared at the creature Leon had become.

_"Too long have I been held by the hands of mortals. Too long have I been held captive by minds unwilling to unleash me fully. Too long have I starved in my prison. My hunger will not be satiated by these creatures."_

I slowly tried to scoot away from him – soon my body was seated upon the edge of the platform we'd been fighting the Mad Hatter's Heartless upon, so close to falling into the abysmal pit that surrounded us that I could taste oblivion upon my being.

_"So long has my power been contained that it can not yet be fully realized. You will assist me until that time has passed. In exchange for your loyalty, your death will be painless. If you refuse me, your consumption will be excruciating. I will devour you piece by piece."_

Shuddering, I nodded feverishly. "Right. I'll lead you! Just please… don't hurt me."

_"Lead on, little shadow."_

Rising to my feet, I bolted past him towards the clock tower the Cheshire Cat had appeared on. Without waiting to see if he was following, I leapt onto one of the clock's undulating weights and rode it to the secondary level of the place. A swift bolt down a side walkway revealed a hidden crevice right where the Cat had appeared – within its recess was nothing other than my knife that I'd dropped back at the campsite Gryphon had snatched us from!

I happily took it in my free hand, taking a moment to slowly form my own body around it.

Hey, if I could take in liquid like that, I figured I'd be able to store extra items that way, too.

With the knife soon encased in my being, I held my croquet mallet tightly and slowly ambled back towards where those weights were located. I gulped softly as I watched Leon calmly step onto the very wooden planks I'd landed on just moments ago, his gunblade back in his right hand – apparently even whatever he'd become took recognition of the fact that it would be a valuable asset during our journey.

His eyes were set on a watch that hovered in mid air.

I slowly ambled to it, timidly taking it into my clawed hand.

The Cheshire Cat formed before us, his smile wide and devilish as his gravely voice wheezed, "This special watch stops time, for a time. Unlike death, time moves on. Those who were stopped move on also – unless they're dead."

A smirk curled Leon's lips as he slowly nodded. _"Intriguing. So even you will have your purpose in battle – perhaps you may stave your execution."_

"Leon…?" I timidly whimpered, looking with terror up at the man I might have once considered to be a friend, praying internally that he would hear my voice and recognize himself.

Please, please be there. Be somewhere in there. Be that man I helped lead from darkness. Be that man that Cloud's so attached to, that allowed Cloud's love to bring him back from the brink of eternal shadow.

He smirked as he knelt before me. _"Leon?"_ he breathed with a soft sneer. _"The name you assign to this mortal shell?"_

"Leon… you're still there, aren't you? Please?" I all but begged, reaching out to lightly touch his hand.

He rose, his hand sliding free of my own and beyond my easy reach. Those eyes flickered only once before the opalescent coloration they'd assumed earlier became all encompassing, flooding completely over white and pupil and iris altogether.

The Cheshire Cat's seemingly eternal sneer slowly faded, falling from his thin dried lips as he slowly faded away. "So does the fall to madness meet its completion. Care, little Shadow who still feels his heart. Realize the task you've taken if you carry through with your choice to remove the creature before you from Wonderland. The battle to separate a creature of the realm of imagination from its chosen home might be more than you can handle."

I gulped as the Cheshire Cat vanished completely, a swirling green portal left in his wake.

Was Leon… was he lost to us completely?

I refused to accept that! He was helping me, trying his best to carry me through the universe to help me find the carrier of my light. I'd help him in turn. No matter what it took, I'd drag him away from this land. "I know you're still there, Leon," I ventured as bravely as I could. "Come on. We've got to go through – the others might be waiting for us."

_"Leon… you speak to an entity that no longer exists."_

I scowled internally, a small portion of me that still hefted about common sense relishing the fact that the fact that I had no lips made it so the being before me couldn't partake in my desired expression. "Then who are you?"

_"I am the devourer of worlds. I am rage. I am hate. I am sorrow. I am terror. I am apocalypse. I am every creature's nightmares birthed into reality. I am the end of existence."_

A shiver ran through my body.

"_I am Eden."_

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies: 

DarkStarPhoenix: Sorry that I couldn't reply to your chapter 41 review in 42 – I posted it about an hour before the review hit my inbox. Feh. To reply to that one… I'm sorry that the chapter seemed rather subpar and annoying. Ah well, can't be perfect. (shrug) And Eden's about impossible to properly describe. I should draw a picture and post it on freaking deviantart instead. Thanks for reviewing!

scarlettHuntress: Heh heh. Zack? Annoying? Never! I heart the guy! He can never be annoying. Alright, so he can grate on the nerves. But no worries! Only a couple more chapters, and no more Zack! We'll be back to Cloudster before you can sing the entire Supercalifragilisticexpialodocious song (from memory, that is)! Ha ha! Anyway, thanks for the review, and thanks for the compliment! Oh, and as for those high school fics? I think because most've the authors are in high school they write what they can relate with… Or maybe… they _do_ breed overnight! Damned high school fics – we should start throwing condoms that them.

Melodious Flurry: Neh heh heh. Psycho Cloud's a cute Cloud and a fun Cloud instead of an angsting mope-bunny Cloud. Zack in Cloudster's head? Good ol' FF7 carry-over. Just took it to the excessive extreme. I love Wonderland for allowing me to do that. Zack's a blast. Ooo! (pounces plushie, gnaws it fitfully before tucking it away with the rest of her babies) Thanks for the review, BTW. (waves one of her multiplying Heartless plushies… what? They're easy to sew, especially now that I have a sewing machine that WORKS! Yes, the world stopped turning yesterday. Why do you ask?)

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(drags her plushie out of the laundry machine) Another screwball chapter down. Woo. Lookin' forward to getting out of Wonderland. It's almost done! Huzzah! (plushie scowls, uttering, "You know nothing. You understand nothing!" right before he's flung into the drier) Typical faire. Please submit reviews! I'd like to know how I did. (curtsies) 


	44. Murder

Now while I realize you all are going to hate my guts, it's actually Sora's time to have a chapter. After all, after every Heartless chapter's a Sora chapter. It's his turn to shine! Neh heh heh.

As condolence, the next Wonderland chapter will be out very shortly; fact is, the chapter's already written – maybe I should torture you guys and wait for at least one review of Sora's escapades before I post? (cackles manically) Or I might be inviting a whole lot of flames and people virtually beating me up or making me their voodoo subjects. Tough decision, that one.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 44  
The Keyblade Master – Murder

I stood at the huge window, staring out into the empty vacuum of space and the huge swirling mass of black that was consuming every shred of light that dared to exist within it. I tried not to focus on the rather frightening turn of events that had occurred during dinner; the sudden departure of the _Palomino's_ Captain Dan Holland, Mr. Charlie Pizer and Mr. Harry Booth at the call of their robot V.I.N.CENT with the strange overtones of madness that flowed from Dr. Hans Reinhardt like darkness had roiled from the cracked doors of Kingdom Hearts after that initial burst of light that dissolved Ansem's form had me edgy. The fact that Donald, Goofy and Jiminy had burst off after them with the suspicion that they may want to converse about the work they were assisting us with accomplishing on the gummi ship didn't help the matter any.

Not only was the departure of those persons and my friends unnerving me, the fleeing of Reinhardt with that monstrous Maximilian and the odd support for the crazy Dr. Reinhardt that Mr. Alex Durant was displaying made me shudder.

Lifting a gloved hand, I lay it upon the chilled glass that segregated me from the unending span of space. My fingertips brushed over that transparent flat surface, leaving light marks to mar the view into the dark recesses beyond. My palm began to steadily grow cold as I left it pressed to that barricade that saved me from death-granting vacuum. My feet remained solidly planted, my body facing that foreboding sight just outside of the _Cygnus'_ huge windows and thick steel walls, leaving only my head to turn slightly to face the other two occupants of the grand dining room I inhabited.

Standing to my right and leaning against the chill glass I rested my hand upon, his thick sweater and gray jumpsuit apparently keeping him warmed against the pressing cold of the endless space beyond that window to the eternal beyond, Alex was looking blankly upon the grand dining table we'd been seated at during our short dinner. Kate, seated upon Alex's other side on one of the chairs pulled from that table, had her hands laced together and her elbows resting upon one of her crossed knees, her chin resting upon the ball her delicate hands crafted.

"Reinhardt will solve the one final mystery that has eluded mankind," Alex softly murmured.

I looked upon him with worry, chewing at my bottom lip. I wasn't liking the sound Mr. Durant's voice was portraying. How he'd come to trust someone as oddly mad as Dr. Reinhardt was far beyond me – the man put me on edge from the moment he'd first grinned in my direction.

"Or he'll die in the attempt," Kate softly replied to Alex's bold statement. "Alex, I'm beginning to feel you want to go with him."

"You really shouldn't," I added. "Going into a black hole? That's crazy! Even if this thing were a gummi ship, I doubt it'd be able to survive going through. And a gummi would stand more of a chance than the _Cygnus_ – at least it can escape into hyperdrive if the black hole's too much for it to handle!"

"Why, Alex?" Kate whispered.

"I do wish to go with him. On a glorious pilgrimage, straight into what may be the mind of God?" He nodded sharply, his face stern as he stared at Kate, my eyes barely able to draw his expression from the faint reflection I could see in the glass he stood before. "I do. I do."

I cringed as I saw the wily old doctor in his red suit with its glittering pendant walk in, his footfalls almost completely silent. Turning myself fully from the window, I stood as respectfully as I could before him and attempted to keep my quakes of worry from reaching my exterior.

However, no matter how hard I tried I couldn't force a grin to my face. I had to settle for a flat line to hide the scowl of consternation I wished desperately to wear before the madman who was dragging the _Cygnus_ into the black hole and had managed to hypnotize Alex into following.

Smirking, the edges of his thick moustache curling even as he brushed dark eyes over my perfectly still and stiff frame to set his gaze upon the _Palomino_ crew members, Dr. Reinhardt chuckled. "Darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

"What's that mean…?" I softly inquired. I huffed as I was resolutely ignored.

Alex and Kate both stared with surprise marking their features as Hans Reinhardt's smile faded from his lips and he walked towards them, his expression bland and lackluster. Kate's shoulders seemed to stiffen slightly when I glanced over to her to gauge her reaction to his approach.

Stopping only once he'd reached the window and stood with the three of us, Dr. Reinhardt simply raised his eyes to the heavens just outside of his grand ship's window and parted his lips. "What an incredible sight. I still haven't got used to it."

"Incredible, but deadly," I mumbled as I walked to Kate's side, fighting violently to keep my Keyblade from appearing as I had found myself doing since our encounter with his monstrous Maximilian and his lack of concern for his robot's fairly repugnant behavior. "I don't think it's a sight any man is supposed to get used to, Doctor."

Kate reached out, laying her hand upon my shoulder; the action seemed to bring her some measure of comfort. Perhaps it was simply the reminder that there was another who sympathized with her and would protect her that would bring that bit of calm to her in our odd situation. "I heartily agree with Sora in this instance."

Shaking his head for a moment, Hans finally pulled his gaze from the swirling mass outside of the ship's protective skin and glanced around the dining room. His lips curled their corners towards his collar as he huffed through his nose. "Where are the others?"

Kate straightened her stance, her hazel eyes staring blandly at the man who stood with us. "They were recalled to the ship."

Turning sharply, eyes narrowed and flashing dangerously even as every hair on his head seemed to bristle, Dr. Reinhardt verily hissed, "Recalled? Didn't I say no more unescorted excursions? Where was your communication?"

"What does it matter?" I bit, trying to take a step forward only to be halted by a warning stare from Alex and a pull upon my shoulder from Kate.

Blinking slowly, Dr. Reinhardt smirked first at me then at Kate. "Ah. The E.S.P. you share with the robot. Extraordinary."

Slowly backing away from us all, Hans Reinhardt's shoulders seemed to move as if with suppressed chuckles.

It was only once he reached the dining room table and put a heavy, loosely bound book down upon its flat surface that he bothered turning his attention back to us. "Dr. Durant," he called.

Alex immediately walked to his side, trusting and obedient. "Yes, Doctor?" he chimed as if on command.

"These are all my formulas I've compiled over the years. I want you to take them back with you, and pass them on to others in case something might happen to me," the bearded man muttered to the graying man in the gray flight suit with a nod.

"You can depend on me," Alex said, his voice filled with awe and joy at the honor he'd been bestowed.

"I want you to monitor my flight. Stay as long as you can at the event horizon. There might be an Einstein-Rosen bridge to consider," Reinhardt instructed with a firm nod.

Glancing over to Kate, I blinked curiously. "What the heck is an Einstein-Rosen bridge?"

She simply cast me a wan smile before holding a finger before her lips, indicating her desire for me to keep my inane questions to a minimum while she attempted to focus on the conversation between her shipmate and the madman.

"I will," Alex immediately agreed.

"Believe me. I've been waiting a long time for someone like you to record this moment," Reinhardt practically sidled.

"Thank you, Doctor," the gray-suited man breathed.

"Then I'm ready," Dr. Reinhardt professed even as he turned and began to walk away, leaving Alex to pick up his abandoned book of formulas. "Ready to embark on man's greatest journey."

Following him, I shook my head even as Kate hissed, "Certainly his riskiest."

Turning back towards us, Hans Reinhardt chuckled softly. "The risk is incidental compared to the possibility to possess the great truth of the unknown. There, long-cherished laws of nature… simply do not apply. They vanish."

Arching a brow, concern finally upon his face, Alex questioned, "And life?"

"Life?" repeated Dr. Reinhardt. "Life forever."

"Life forever? But that's impossible! Nothing can make mankind immortal," I grumbled as we stepped out of the dining room and traveled down the lavish hallway to the high-speed transport that connected the tower we were in to the control room.

"There, Sora, is where you are mistaken. It is entropy that spells doom for mankind. A simple natural law. Decay of the cell, degradation of molecular stability. In that realm where such laws have no application and all comes to a halt, there is nothing to end life," Dr. Reinhardt said with a smirk.

"I see the validity of your theories," Alex said with an awed nod.

"Nothing to end life? I can't believe that. Only one thing I can think of would grant anything close to immortality. That thing just happens to be a fate worse than death," I hissed, my voice raw and grumbled.

Even as Kate looked upon me with concern in her eyes, her silent question as to what I'd seen and what I'd been through evident upon her face, I simply turned my glare to my yellow sneakers.

I wondered if Riku was even alive anymore, trapped in an impossible land behind an eternally locked door. I wondered if he was immortal, caught in Kingdom Hearts with the King. Either he was timeless, encased in that dark land where nature's laws are dead… or he's dead himself.

I had a feeling that the black hole would be the same way. Immortality couldn't be achieved by flinging yourself through a one-way portal. All that it lead to was separation… and possibly death. In the case of the massive rift in space, I felt certain it was definitely death.

We arrived at the control room, our trip having been surprisingly silent as everyone had been staring at me, awaiting my clarification as to what this 'fate worse than death' I had witnessed was. I stepped free of the transport without giving any of my impromptu traveling companions any inkling as to what I had spoken of.

Stepping off the transport behind me, Dr. Reinhardt swiftly overtook me with long and purposeful strides. His confident footfalls carrying him to that desk he assumed when he commanded his vessel, he swept into his chair and verily spun to direct one of his gothic robots. "Fix navigational course," he sharply instructed.

Walking to the desk Dr. Reinhardt sat behind, Alex still gazed with unabashed adoration, leaving Kate the drag me almost forcibly towards the elevator that punctured through the deck we stood upon. She almost was carrying me after her shipmate, her eyes wary as she stared at him.

"You have achieved all this on your own, Dr. Reinhardt. You'd have every right to reject the request of a comparative stranger, but…" Alex began, his voice almost bashful.

"What are you doing?" I hissed.

"What are you hoping for?" Reinhardt questioned, quirking one bushy brow. "Immortality?"

"No," Alex instantly replied, his eyes widening a bit. "Scientific truth."

Kate finally squeezed sharply on my shoulder. "Sora, the repairs to your ship are as complete as they can be. It's not perfect, but according to Vincent it should be functional."

"Really?" I brightly exclaimed.

After nodding once in my direction to affirm her statement, Kate turned her gaze to Dr. Durant. "Alex, we have to board right away. They're waiting to blast off."

Dr. Reinhardt finally regarded us. I shuddered.

His eyes were icy as he rose out of his chair. Lips parting to bare grit teeth, he ground out, "Prepare reactors."

Even as the robots at their consoles began to manipulate their panels, Dr. Reinhardt called to Maximilian.

Kate kept her eyes focused on her shipmate, her voice quivering with worry even as Alex approached, his face stern with reproach for being told to leave Hans Reinhardt's side. "Alex, I will not have you throw your life away for this," she sharply bit, her voice edgy with the tears she was attempting to hold back. I grimaced as I noted the sparkles that graced her lashes.

"He can do it," Dr. Durant ground out. "I know he can."

"Oh God, Alex!" she cried.

"There's an entirely different world beyond that black hole, a point where time and space as we understand it no longer exists. We will be the first to see it, to explore it, to experience it," Alex said softly even as Reinhardt gave his robots the order to activate the reactors.

Alex watched the proceedings with interest. I on the other hand was more concerned with Kate – she was staring with concern and fear at the robots that lined the computer consoles around the room. "Alex…" she softly whispered. "Sora…" she murmured a moment later.

"What is it?" I instantly responded, ignoring the doctor who was muttering his calculations. As Alex tried to wave her off, she hissed for his attention again. I crossed my arms. "Want me to fetch him?"

He wandered over on his own accord, the wily Reinhardt's calculations continuing as an inane drabble in the background. Kate's eyes were huge, her face pale and sweaty as she stared at us both. "Remember what we were talking about the other day?" she began before dropping her voice. "We've got to get out."

"I'm staying," Alex immediately bit.

"Shhh! Reinhardt is a murderer."

"What?" Alex and I both bit in unison. Yeah, the man's creepy as heck, but a murderer?

"Yes!" Kate continued. "Those creatures aren't robots… they're humanoids. They're what's left of the original crew!"

"No way!" I exclaimed.

"What's wrong, Miss Kate?" Dr. Reinhardt's voice hissed from directly over my shoulder, freezing me in my shoes. "You look ill."

"Kate's upset because I've elected to stay with the _Cygnus_," Alex said.

"I hope she's elected also to stay with us," Dr. Reinhardt sneered.

"No I do not!" she bit, stomping away.

Reinhardt arched a brow, smirking slyly. "What changed your mind?"

"She has more sense than to go into a black hole," I helpfully supplied with a nod.

"Let the good Doctor speak for herself, Sora," Dr. Reinhardt reprimanded with a chuckle.

"I'm not. I, uh…" Kate began, her voice faltering as she looked nervously around.

Even as Reinhardt was professing that the right moment to go through the black hole was now, I watched as Alex slowly snuck away to stare at a robot. His hand snaked out, grabbing the faceplate of that robotic operator.

"What are you doing?" Reinhardt instantly shouted.

I staggered back, falling right onto my butt as he revealed a deathly pale human face, its skin drawn tight against its skull, its blue lips gasping desperately for air and its eyes huge and empty. Sunken cheeks flared out for a moment as a skinny jaw worked up and down, chewing on breath even as the shrunken nose uselessly flapped its nostrils in a worthless attempt to function properly.

Kate doubled over, looking ready to throw up even as Reinhardt growled quietly. "He would be dead by now. They would all be dead. It was the only way to keep them alive. One of my greatest achievements."

"You stole their humanity…" I whispered, staring with horror at the living corpse before me. "You stole their free will, didn't you? That's why you can profess that they're robots and have no one question you! You stole their ability to do anything but obey you!"

"You told us the crew had left the ship," Alex whimpered, his faith in genius and dedication to study dashed before his eyes as he regarded the _Cygnus_' captain.

"Some cause must have created all this," Reinhardt softly mused, turning away from our small conglomeration. "But what caused that cause?"

"Come on, Kate. Let's get you out of here," Alex finally said, gripping her slim arm and hauling her to her feet.

Even as I began to stand up on my own, I stared as Maximilian descended from its worksite.

"Maximilian!" Hans Reinhardt's voice shouted.

Alex turned sharply, his book of formulas granted to him by the Dr. Reinhardt held before his chest.

I cried out as it snapped its arms forward and the whirling blades that made up its hands began to twirl rapidly, cutting noisily through the air. Calling the Keyblade, I felt the familiar weight of Ultima Weapon appearing in my hands.

Alex screamed loudly, his face pale and his jaw opened as widely as it could be without breaking.

Kate sobbed violently even as I was frozen in place – blood was being flung wildly around the control room along with meaty chunks of intestinal matter, shards of broken lower ribs, granules of ripped muscle and tissue and shreds of the formula book granted to the good Dr. Durant by Hans Reinhardt; the formulas that would bring the _Cygnus_ into the black hole had been lifted to attempt to ward off the bronzed robotic horror. My knees shook violently as Alex's death throes rang through the air, his blood gushing from his body and pouring across the floor, the grinding of blades through flesh nauseatingly loud and sounding slick with his juices.

Those blades caught on his spine, the solid resistance of bone snaring those whirling sharp instruments. Spinning so strongly, those weapons ripped his dead body right off its feet and whipped it right into the nearby power reactor pit. As it struck rods and electrical transformer projections, sparks flew and the smell of burning human hair and flesh filled the air.

I immediately ran to Kate's side, falling to my knees and laying the hand that wasn't holding Ultima Weapon on her shoulder.

Reinhardt scowled at his bloodstained robot, barking, "You shouldn't have done that! He was a good man." Turning to us as Maximilian floated away, he whispered, "Protect me from Maximilian."

"Protect you?" I shouted. "You programmed him that way! He obeys you! You can't fool me!"

"If there's any justice at all," Kate whispered, her voice flooded with hate, "the black hole will be your grave."

Sentry robots stepped out of the elevator, surrounding Kate and me. "Take the young lady to the hospital," Reinhardt directed. "Sora, remain here. You robots, see that he does. If he refuses to cooperate or attempts to use that mysterious weapon of his, ensure that you relay Dr. McCrae and the _Palomino's_ crew positions to Maximilian so that he might introduce them to Dr. Durant's fate."

I growled quietly as she was lead away, my eyes focused darkly on Dr. Reinhardt's back even as he sneered and pressed a button on one of his consoles. It instantly occurred to me that he was speaking into an intercom system.

"You're cleared for takeoff, Captain. You as well, crew of the gummi ship. Sora, Dr. Durant and Dr. McCrae chose to remain aboard."

"He's lying!" I hurriedly shouted, scowling as I noted that he'd released his button before my voice could carry.

"Maximilian, bring us about."

I barely kept the bile in my stomach from exploding out of my mouth as I watched the view out of the bridge's front window – the _Cygnus_ was turning to face directly into the black hole.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

Melodious Flurry: Mwe heh heh. Yeah, it was a bit of a plot twist last chapter, neh? Truth be told, that part was planned, just as what's going to happen next chapter's been planned for awhile. All that was unplanned was the depravity that was chapter 41 and its demented delving into Leon's memories coupled with breaking his brain completely. Cid and Zack/Cloud's reactions are going to be… interesting. You'll have to wait and see, neh? Heh heh. Thank you so much for your compliments on my writing – those really do matter to me, seeing as how I'm a terrible critic of my own work (I've been rereading this story and whining about how horribly full of errors it is – look for a huge edit of BCD in the future). And yay! Another virtual plushie! I ought to make me a virtual shelf. (cackle)

Kitty Kyinsky: You know, I always wondered why Ultimecia professed that Griever was the strongest GF when Eden could kick its butt damage-wise when I played through FF8. I mean, a single attack that does over 35,000. Over. Kill. Maybe it's because Griever has more HP? That's all I can think of. (rubs head, confused) Anyway! Sorry I made you sad! You did say you'd be upset if the next chapter was Sora and Company. Sora, if he were real, would probably be bawling his eyeballs out thanks to you, you horrible person. (snerk) Anyway, next chapter should be a bit more satisfying – we're getting back to Wonderland. Huzzah, only a couple more chapters of that place to go!

Raz: (basks in the glow of the review) Ahhhh. Your reviews are so wonderful! 'Wow,' while simple, is still so very appreciated and so very much more than I deserve. You make me blush fitfully. Me taking away the ability to think coherently? Woo. That's more than I do believe I'm capable of. That amazes me. (heh heh, sorry 'bout your game-play – that's an unintended side effect. I look and go 'aw, so cute! What if…?' when I play too, if that makes you feel better; after all, that's how this fic was spawned.) And Eden is just too awesome to leave untouched. She is my 'abuse like nuts' GF in FF8… and creepy as all hell when you think about what she does. The detail I went into just seemed so very necessary, especially as I'm writing for the Kingdom Hearts community (and seeing as how I absolutely love grotesque horror, and that's potentially supplied by Eden in loads). To answer your questions about Leon… he'll get his own mind back. No worries there. And Cloud won't be murdered by him – after all, this story does take place between KH1 and KH:CoM. So calm down, m'dear! No reason to let your blood pressure rise uncontrollably. However, your question about Leon and whether or not he knows what's going on…? I'll let the story itself answer that one. Patience, patience.

Manders1953: Well, Eden's been there all the while – just with no mental defenses and barricades against the most kick-ass GF ever, Leon can't hold her down anymore. Just because Leon/Squall's no longer on his home world doesn't mean that he had to auto-drop all of his GFs, after all! Maybe remove the junctions, but not drop the GFs. That's how I see it – in FF8, no matter how many times you got your junctions stripped none of your GFs were revoked. Just had to junction them back up. And now I'm rambling, because I'm typing while tired and doing so to good music. Bleh. Hope you liked this chapter, even though it was a delve into Sora land again!

Saya: Thank you for reviewing! I truly appreciate it. Yeah, Leon's got… problems. He's going to need a veritable miracle to recover – but no worries. It's all planned. (devilish grin)

scarlettHuntress: Aw, no reason to be scared for poor Leon! He'll be fine. Maybe. (cackle) Thanks for the compliment on the summon! Describing that thing was a pain. We're talking running from the den to the living room, summoning Eden, pausing it part of the way through the animation so I could run back to the den to write it, running back to start the animation again, pause it again, blah blah blah. Sorry that I didn't skip right over Sora. The Black Hole needs to wrap up, too! His next adventure is one I've been looking forward to for awhile. (sniffs) Am I the only person who loves Sora anymore? Feh. Anyway, next chapter's going to be here really, really soon, so you won't be deprived of Wonderland for long. Happy?

DarkStarPhoenix: Yay! I played with heads! I'm happy. (takes a moment to think, blinks) Eh, that sounded rather perverted – didn't mean it that way! (sheepish laugh) Anyway. Thanks for reviewing! Leon being Leon? When we leave Wonderland. Neh heh. And to answer your other question, unfortunately our Heartless friend won't get to keep his weapons. Pity, though – I'd love to have him running around with that croquet mallet. That thing kicks arse. And Season's Greetings to you as well!

Li the Twilight Knight: Thank's so much for the review PM! Any review received in any fashion is very appreciated. Sucks that you can't utilize buttons on your proxy, though! Urgh. Anyway, to reply to the review proper, I love Eden! She's not scary! Eh heh. Not one li'l bit. (smirk) And yeah, I do believe the true victim here's our poor Shadow friend. Of _course_ he can't catch a break! And I love Zack. Such a pity he's got to go away. His overprotective tendencies are endearing. Of course he'd fight the whole damned world! Now to reply to the end of your review, yep. In the Navy. And I'm not going IA, so I won't ever set foot in Iraq – closest I get is making circles in the water in the Persian Gulf. Thanks for the wishes of luck! Things went well enough. Being a nuclear operator's boring, though. We don't see any sort of action – we just stand watch and make sure our reactors' operating correctly. Yippee-freakin'-yay.

* * *

(holds her head as Sora cries, his sobs devastated, while realization that no one seems to like him washes over his spiked head) Geh. Sorry 'bout the Sora chapter. (cringes as more cries ring before flinging her Ansem plushie (SUBMIT!) at the character) I'd still like to know how I did, though! Please review! 


	45. Lair

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, American McGee's Alice or Final Fantasy VII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 45  
The Ex-SOLDIER…? – Lair

I inhaled deeply, smiling brightly at my companion. "Look at it this way. At least it's warm!"

Mr. Highwind's voice carried in its screeching escalades words that would make ogres blush in shame.

Plastering a bland look to my face, lowering my lashes and crinkling my brow, I set a firm pout onto my lips. No laughing allowed – this look actually made petulant bastards like the stick-up-his-ass General Extraordinaire back down a bit and gruffly offer a semblance of an apology for his behavior from time to time. Puffing my cheeks slightly, scuffing my boot's toe against the dusty ground under my feet, I sniffed heartily. "Sheesh. You don't have to be like that, you know."

"Fuck off, moron," he barked.

Apparently, Cid Highwind had even more of that ramrod up his arse than my previous compatriot. Huzzah.

Peering into the cavern we'd been deposited outside of, I arched a brow as I noted a large lumbering lizard shuffling about. And of course, as everything else in this land had been, it was like nothing I'd ever seen before.

Standing upon two massive legs with giant claws digging into the hard rock, a huge skull carrying a gigantic set of jaws flooded with marvelously long fangs and a lolling tongue that splattered drool everywhere was counterweighted by a thick tail that slowly swayed from side to side with every gaited step. Small beady eyes peered about even as humongous nostrils flared to take in nearby scents. With a gruff growl the creature turned slightly, sniffing desperately.

"What an odd thing," I marveled as I stared at it, my sword loosely held in my right hand as I set my left upon my hip.

Soon a set of little red imp-like critters passed near that lollygagging lizard, small pitchforks carried in tiny red, clawed hands. Horned humanoid heads all faced towards Cid and me, bright black eyes glowering hatefully at our intruding selves. Pointed little stringy tails flailed behind them as they ran at breakneck speed for us.

Oh, how marvelous! Giant draconic lizard things and devilish imps! I could tell this place was going to be my favorite land of all.

Yeah. Sure. I would love it just like I loved getting shot in the head multiple times. Oh, a great time to be had by all. Screw that.

Cid apparently agreed heartily with me. Planting the blunt end of his spear against the ground, he gripped it with both hands and leaned against its supporting frame. "The fuck is this shit?" he grumped, his eyes narrowed coldly. "I'm so goddamned sick of this crap."

"So we hit 'em hard and fast?" I imputed with a smirk.

"Fuck it," he sighed, sliding his hands down on that spear as he flopped down on his rear.

The hell!

"Hey, Cid! What the heck's wrong with you?" I quickly questioned, looking him over for any debilitating injuries I possibly hadn't noticed before.

Looking blankly at me, he shook his head. "Why do we even bother anymore? Think about it – we're all too far along to help. We're pro'lly stuck in this fucking place anyway, so why fight it?"

My eyes almost rolled out of my head. "What're you saying? C'mon! We've gotta keep going!"

"To where?" he questioned, snorting softly. "The gummi? Who says we'd be able to even leave if we find it? Yeah, if we find it… who even says we're on the right path to it?"

"But-"

"Just shaddup and listen, fucktard," he snorted. "We ain't got a clue where it is. And from what that mangy Cat says, he'll lead us to it only when we defeat this Jabberwock. How the hell are we gonna do that shit? We ain't got Leon; the gunblader's head's completely gone. He ain't nothin' but an animal at best now, if he's even alive. And who's to say that we're ever gonna see him again anyway? That griffon took him away. You're so fucking gone that you don't even know you're Cloud anymore – for all intents and purposes, you're a goddamned dead guy; you're Zack, no matter how much you fucking drive me crazy these days. Me? I'm too fucking old for this shit. I shouldn't have lived as long as I have. I shouldn't have lived longer than Shera; I should've died with Shera. I should've died with Shera instead of runnin' like a fuckin' coward in my airship. And the whole reason we're out here anyway is 'cause we're tryin' to help that little Shadow Heartless. He's pro'lly dead, too. Carried off with Leon by that griffon – either something in this fucked up Wonderland's killed his defenseless self or Leon's stomped him into the ground in some bout of insanity."

"Cid," I quietly intoned, "it's not so bad as all of that, right? C'mon. You're one hell of a fighter. That Heartless' got some great survival instincts. Leon may be mentally toast, but his animal behavior will see him through. If he's nothing but a beast, he'll return to us – beasts return to their packs, right? And I… I'm not Cloud. I'm Zack. Always have been."

"Fuckin' hell, kid. You just don't see how hopeless it is, do you? Fuck you. Go the hell away," he grumped, closing his eyes and hanging his head morosely.

Shaking my head, I turned on my heel to stare at the conglomeration of devilish guys that were running towards us, their passing by the meandering lizard grasping its attention. While they all approached as one, giant green feet barely missing the little red humanoid demons that practically jogged under them, I lay my other hand on my segmented sword's hilt.

Crap. Looked like I'd end up having to play defender. Cid was making no move to rise from his spot.

With a hearty scream I leapt towards the approaching conglomeration of monstrous beasties, my sword leading the way as I flew almost parallel with the ground. That odd instinctual lust for flight hit me again, rustling the cape I was wearing over my SOLDIER uniform wildly and giving room for some object I could barely catch sight of out of my peripheral vision to flap. Looked like some leathery wing. Not something I could bring myself to be concerned about – if it was giving me an added burst of speed, who was I to care?

The little imps tried to scatter even as I burst straight into them, my lips curling in a sneer as I felt the resistance of their bodies give way before the sharp edge of my segmented sword.

A sudden twist of my wrist and a yank of my sword towards the heavens sent one little imp caught on its tip flying into the air. My off-hand grabbed the end of the sword's hilt, dragging it suddenly back towards the earth even as I spun on my toes. Another imp was cleaved cleanly in half, the edge of the sword a bare inch from the ground.

A flap of that leathery wing and a leap backwards put me easily out of reach of the gout of lightning that draconic lizard spewed at me; let me say, that's enough of a surprise to set a man of less fortitude into shitting himself. Lightning breathing lizards. Nice!

As soon as my toes connected with the ground again, I spun once more, ending my movement with a leap straight up accompanied by a flap of that wing.

Hell yeah, baby. Airborne! Only way to fight.

Turning midair, I sneered and flapped that wing again, plummeting straight down to the ground. My sword's tip went straight into the base of that massive lizard's back.

A snap of its jaws caught my arm, scraping flesh from bone. I winced even as I pulled my other hand from my sword and sent my fist right into the lousy monster's eyeball, leading with one extended finger to gouge its beady little orb right out of its socket.

I was electrocuted a moment later, laying on the ground and twitching violently as power surged through my body. Bastard apparently didn't like me partially blinding it. And as I stared at the sky while it faded from that marvelous brimstone red it had been into a lush black, I finally heard the sound I'd been longing to hear since charging into that assembly of silly little imps.

Cid's enraged scream barreled over the landscape as he finally sprang into action and slaughtered the remainder of those imps that horded around me, his spear masterfully circling around him.

"Heh," I wheezed even as I plastered a smile to my lips while he plunged the business end of his spear between that lizard's jaws and sent it straight out the back of its skull with a crunch. "Knew you wouldn't just sit there forever."

"You thrice damned retard! Tryin' to get yourself killed?" he snarled heartily even as the crystalline container that rose from the lizard, huge and heart-shaped, burst open and leaked its innards all over him. Shaking his head, he glowered at me and huffed.

It was so spiffy looking. Cid, nearly glowing against a nearly black background like some unholy angel fallen from grace and made into a crusty remnant of a person by nicotine, frustration and general cranky bitchiness. His spear left glowing arches whenever it moved. I do believe the only way I could have hoped for better effects would be to add being stoned to being nearly dead. That would've been cool.

I felt a warmth rush over me, my vision washed over by a soothing red mist then more or less normalizing. I sighed with hearty disappointment as the sky once more was red and Cid was just another inhabitant of the boring landscape with its lava pools and fiery geysers once more.

"That's all the metaessence that's left," Cid huffed as he hefted his spear over his shoulder and glared down at me. "Think I got enough that I shouldn't slip again. You got enough to stand yer worthless ass up?"

"Yeah, think so," I breathed as I shoved myself to my feet. Woah. Woozy.

"What the hell was that fuckin' thing?" he grumbled, shaking his head as he turned around in a slow circle and perused our surroundings. "I just hope we don't run into any more of the bastards."

A soft chuckling slid from down a long tunnel even as a mangy looking scrawny excuse for a cat faded into being, body slowly forming around a gleaming white grin of flat teeth and sharp incisors. "Jabberspawn. Most plentiful nearest the Jabberwock's lair are they, answering the call of both the shell that remained after the heart was stripped away and the beastly shadow crafted of that stolen heart's darkness. Heartless and that which remains after the heart is torn asunder both hold domain."

Arching a brow, I stared at the cat. "So you're meaning to tell us that there're _two_ Jabberwock things?"

"You gotta fuckin' be kidding me!" Cid barked.

Ducking his head on his skinny neck, his bony tail lashing about behind him, the cat sneered even as its ears perked forward. "Two stand where only once was one. Two is one too many for Alice to face. The product of her insanity is the product she must overcome."

Cid snorted as he gripped his spear tightly, turning it in circles as it rested on his shoulder. "So it's like our li'l Heartless buddy said. The Heartless are an extra weight on this girl's heart an' soul, so we gotta eradicate 'em. And the leader of 'em's the Heartless form of the Jabberwock."

"Your prey lies in his lair. Make haste, and perhaps you shall see the battle's conclusion with a shred of your sanity intact," the cat breathed, its demonic eyes winking at Cid before it faded from view.

"His lair, eh?" Cid muttered, gritting his teeth together tightly.

"What'd you say to going down the tunnel the cat appeared it? Bet'cha it was giving us a clue."

Shrugging, he nodded at me. "Yeah. No reason to check anywhere else, really. One tunnel's as good as another.

It wasn't long until what started out as a casual walk down the tunnel, our slow and steady hopping from rock to rock that passed over the thick liquid river of molten lava that poured through that very tunnel we were expected to traverse, our careful avoidance of what was certain death by fiery spittle spewed by freaking invincible fish that lived in that burning inferno we were skirting over, became a manic flight for that tunnel's termination.

See, it's not that either Cid or me have a problem with fighting. Especially not those imp guys or the lizards the cat dubbed to be Jabberspawn. But when the shadows on the walls begin to ooze into reality, spawning antennae-bearing guys that are taller and lankier and not so damned cute as our buddy that got snatched by the griffon and them calling reinforcements in the forms of flying dragon guys that Cid called Wyverns, balls of darkness with big ass maws that bounded around crazily, big fat dudes whose bulk was just as dangerous as their flailing fists and whose bellies made them impervious to frontal attacks and stony gargoyles that chased you about with their weapons, a guy runs. A guy runs like ol' Sephy was after him for painting the company jeep purple with giant orange flames down its sides. Again.

Yeah, those 'Heartless' as Cid liked to call 'em were pouring out of the fucking woodworks. They could probably sense that we were going after their leader. Mr. Highwind said that eliminating the Jabberwock would break their tether to the girl Alice's mind – it was apparently through this creature, tied to darkness, that she was being forced to suffer as well. Kill it, and we kill the anchoring force that made these wily shadowy things burst into being all over the damned place. They knew it. They were trying to stop us.

So I more or less just grabbed Cid by the band he wore around his waist and carried him as I hippity-hopped like a wild jackrabbit from rock to rock, barely managing to keep my footing and not go plunging face first into the lava that flowed rapidly by. Yeah, that would've hurt.

Soon enough I was careening up the side of a small cliff to reach a tiny opening above, gasping sharply as light struck my eyeballs.

The valley beyond that hole I'd just burst through was, quite literally, entirely engulfed in flames. Oddly enough, however, a mountain set in the center of the lava-flooded, fire-spewing area was untouched, as was the house set upon its top.

"Well, that's a quaint looking place," I chortled. "Nice scenery around it, too."

"Put me down, jackass!" Cid snapped wildly.

"Not until we reach a safe haven. I'll set you on your feet once we reach that little house atop the hill, alright?"

I closed my ears to whatever it was that Cid was screaming – I'm certain that it'd insult my poor innocent self, tearing away what's left of my audio-virginity. Gotta preserve every last shred I've got, you know. Instead of standing in place and allow him to pry apart those barricades I've perfected over the years against things I really don't want to hear (works wonderfully when you're trying to ignore orders, even when they're pouring from the slightly down-turned 'and-if-you-call-them-pouting-he'll-rip-off-your-face' full lips of a green-eyed General with stylish girl-hair and a petulant li'l not-pout that can make a guy's ability to resist turn into mush) I decided it'd be more beneficial to our combined goals of finding the Jabberwock and winning our rights to find the gummi ship and depart Wonderland to get a move on. So, Cid under arm, I took off into a leaping frenzy once more.

This time it wasn't quite so death-defying and harrowing. There weren't any of those freaking lightning-spewing Jabberspawn around. No imps, either. Just fishies jumping in and out of the lava and spitting flames at me and Heartless pouring out of the rocks.

Yeah, nothing too hard. I was moving far too fast for the Heartless to have an opportunity to strike once they'd finished forming themselves. Granted they were chasing me for all that their little lives were worth, but that didn't mean they'd have the capability to catch me.

Springing from rocks onto the sides of looming cliff walls and rebounding from that central mountainous spire's sides to alight onto a slender ledge, hop from that ledge onto one alongside of that household-bearing spire's side and finally jump onto its top, I left everything that would chase me firmly in the dust. With a smirk I put Cid down firmly on his feet. "Better?"

Cid dropped to his knees, nausea finally wafting over him.

Leaning down, I lightly patted the old man's back. "Sorry about that. Had to ramp up the speed a bit to keep those Heartless and those flame-spitting fish from being able to do us in."

"Yeah," he groaned as he wiped his mouth on the back of a sleeveless arm. "I noticed."

"Better than being dead. Rather like I preached to that Strife kid." Sighing quietly, I let my jolly demeanor fall for a moment. "Neh, think once we trash this Jabberwock, Cloud'll show up?"

Looking at me with narrowed blue eyes, Mr. Highwind huffed softly. "We can only hope, Zack."

Nodding once, I smiled faintly. Of course that kid was doing alright for himself, wherever he was hiding. He'd show up once the danger was over and passed. After all, if there were any danger around him, he knew that all he had to do was call on good ol' Zack. I'd reply as swiftly as I could, no matter the circumstances.

Hell, I'd given my life for the kid, as my rather wiggly memory seems to merrily recall. I'd sacrificed myself so our pursuit would leave him be, let him recover from the Mako poisoning he was suffering from and potentially live out the rest of his years free from Shinra control. I'd been brought back from the Life Stream in the nick of time to save his butt again from an aggressor he had no chance of fighting, an aggressor he was now quite distinctly separated from thanks to the efforts of myself and one feathery griffon.

I had nothing to worry about so far as Cloud was concerned.

Steadying my stance and straightening my posture, I threw my head back and hefted that glorified rendition of my trusty Buster Sword over my right shoulder, my hand tightening its grip on that weapon's haft. "You know," I began, my voice edged with what confidence I could lob at it, "if I were to suppose that any place around here would be the lair of this Jabberwock, this would be it."

"A house," Cid muttered, chewing on his lower lip.

"Only place that stands out. Only place that attracts attention. And only place that's reliably safe from the fiery geysers that're springing up everywhere else. If I was a monster who was going to make my lair around these parts, this would be the joint."

"You do got a point," my partner muttered.

"Plus, there're those Jabberspawn things at the door. And some Heartless too. Looks like we were noticed."

"Well, no shit!" Mr. Highwind bit, shaking his head. "Fucking fabulous."

"Nothing to do but go get 'em!" I laughed even as I sprang towards them, charging as swiftly as my Mako-flooded body was capable of.

Needless to say, I was able to burst right through the conglomeration of would-be foes before they could blink. I heard roars of befuddled confusion followed by Cid's rampant war cry and the splattering of hot blood released by a deadly spear onto the hot ground outside.

Next thing I knew, I was slammed solidly onto the ground.

Oh holy heck, did that smart!

With a whimper I raised my head, glancing at my body. Huge tears were ripped in my left side, delivered by giant claws that were wickedly sharp. I was bleeding rather profusely.

And standing before me, right where I was aimlessly flying towards, was what I could only assume was the Jabberwock.

Standing well over twenty feet in height, the beast leered at me with huge draconic jaws that were flooded with glistening sharp white fangs. Pupil-lacking yellow eyes glowered at me from either side of the massive skull, the slight depression of the flesh above them narrowing those wickedly gleaming orbs. Nostrils flared softly. Giant hands bearing huge claws for fingers hovered but inches off the ground, connected to a slender lizard-like body by slimly muscled arms. Two thin legs, jointed as those of a bipedal dragon or dinosaur as to set all of the monster's weight upon its clawed toes, carried it as it paced slowly towards me. A thick tail lumbered back and forth behind it. From its shoulders sprang a pair of long leathery wings, almost mechanical in construction with every joint a visible bearing. The creature's chest was a burning furnace carrying upon its ribbed door that same emblem carried by some of the Heartless of an empty, crossed out heart, that furnace's four exhaust pipes spread to either side of the monster where one curled in front of and over a shoulder and the other slipped under the armpit to erupt above the back. Smoke billowed behind it as it turned on its clawed toes, slowly pacing around me, its focus never leaving my broken body.

"So, you did believe you could arrive at this place, my lair, and defeat me? Fools. You come to eradicate the darkness of another's mind when you can not defeat the insanity of your own?"

I coughed liquidly, scowling as I felt blood bubble onto my lips.

"Know in your final moments of your failure. Find in your failing minds despair. Join this fallen Wonderland forever – sacrifice your souls to the darkness."

I wanted to cast the creature a marvelously sarcastic reply, but instead I screamed.

I'd just been bathed in flames breathed from the Jabberwock's mouth.

Writhing on the floor, the last of my strength fading, I heard a familiar voice sigh around me. "Still can't handle anything on your own, can you, Zachary?"

I whimpered pathetically. I wondered… would he help me? Or would he leave me to rot?

"Of course I'll assist you, ridiculous buffoon. Now retreat. I shall take care of the rest."

I merrily obeyed.

After all, if anyone could pull us out of this fiasco, it'd be the General.

As the flames died, I slowly rose to my feet, glowering at the creature before me.

Then I stared at the sword in my hand.

What the….

Dropping it, I called upon my own weapon.

As Masamune formed, its steel cool and familiar in my hand and verily shaking with eager desire for the blood of the creature before me, I smiled.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

Raz: Thank you once more for your review. I truly do treasure every one of them! So well thought out. So very sorry that the last Sora chapter was in no way a 'calm down' chapter, but we have hit the pivotal point of 'The Black Hole,' that point that had me stunned into awed silence and staring at the television screen during Wonderful World of Disney. Worry not for our little spiky-headed brunet – of course he'll pull through somehow. How, I've yet to determine, especially seeing as how 'The Black Hole' didn't have the kindest of endings for the protagonists! The next world will indeed be a lot more fluffy. Relatively speaking, actually. It should be… intriguing, to say the very least. No worries about this being drawn out. The Final Fantasy group will be escaping Wonderland very, very shortly. And as for Sora, I think one or two more chapters should have the movie he's in over and done with. Thank goodness. (wipes her brow) Anyway, do hope you enjoyed this chapter, even though I was a bit disappointed with its rather cookie-cutter ending.

hybrid2: Ah, thanks for reviewing! So you were one of the people who actually recognized some of the lines from FF8, eh? Congratulations! I'd give you my Ansem plushie, but he's not up for grabs. Neh heh. Yeah, chapter 41 was a pain - basically replaying all of FF8 so I could pull quotes out of it wasn't exactly a task I took an astute amount of pleasure in. Yes, I love the game. But pausing it all the time so I can jot down notes instead of just slathering like a brain-dead fangirl while Squall mentally wails his woes before trudging from FH to Ester on foot? Bleh. I'm glad you've been enjoying the story! And sorry, but Alice will soon be a thing of the past… only one more chapter of it to go. Hopefully the next areas they go through will be enough to keep your attention!

Li the Twilight Knight: Mwa hah hah. Professor Hojo and Reinhardt? Equivalent? Certainly, certainly. Not too removed of a speculation. But I think Reinhardt's more lovable. (sick grin) I think it's almost twisted that it takes mortal danger for poor Sora to be interesting, though. (laughs) As for Iraq, well, we're all volunteers, you know? Oh well. Thanks for the PM'd review, especially considering what a pain it must be to do this without having any of ff . net's buttons!

Melodious Flurry: Thank you so much! I'm glad Sora was more of a break than a disappointment. (pounces on plushie before coming enraptured with staring at bookshelves) Oooo… but anyway, thanks for reviewing and thanks for the appreciative words! They really do mean a lot. Happy Holidays to you, too!

* * *

(laughs manically as she sticks her Ansem plushie on Zack's head) Sayonara, porcupine-head! (cackles as the demon plushie chews wildly, slobbering as it slathers out "SUBMIT!") Oh. Yes. Reviews would be highly appreciated! Maybe they'll rescue our dear cameo-boy's poor skull from being chewed to bits. Not that it matters – technically, he's dead anyway. (smirk) 


	46. I

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 46  
The Guardian Force – I

I am.

From the very moment the path to conscious reality was torn open, I am.

From the dawning of time itself, I am.

Until the end of all things real, I am.

I am the end of creation.

I am the decimation of innocence.

I am the harbinger of destruction.

I am.

Nothing but me truly exists. The clock tower upon which my bearer's body stands, the black creature that moves before me, the swirling green portal promising a new destination closer to that which believes its power over this world is absolute – they are not truly present. They are shadows. They are waif imaginings in this realm, here only to sustain me.

Human, weapon, true form, I am.

The cloth casually draped over the body I inhabit, the weapon in the calloused right hand, those are. I acknowledge the brush of fabric upon my shell's skin. I realize the cool feel of steel in my grasp. They complete this vision of me. They are real.

When I step forward, the clock tower is. The sound of my feet against the hard stone confirms its reality. It is part of my surroundings, part of my environment, part of that with which I can interact. I recognize it as part of my existence. It comes into being.

The portal is. I pass the mortal shell that bears my essence through its mists, arriving in a land of fire and heat. It caresses my chosen body. I feel it and its results.

I am mercy.

I am love.

I am mother.

I am the bringer of life.

Without me, nothing exists. Nothing is real. Only through my touch do they begin to throb with existence. Only through y devotion does the heart begin to race, pumping life and blood and reality through an otherwise nonexistent shell.

I am.

I am grateful to the child whose body bears me. I am honored to possess such a fine young man. I will do anything to assist him in his journeys, providing him with power unmatched by anything within this universe.

He freed me from the decayed mind of an ancient Weapon. He invited me into his brain, offering me memories both horrid and succulent, offering me residence with my fellow Guardian Forces and freedom from my prison in exchange for my aid. He offered me the ability to strike against Hyne's descendants, those fools who believe that they exist independently of me.

I love him.

I will break his body. I will rape his mind. I will rend his soul. I will devour his heart.

Through my devouring of his very essence shall he become permanent in my vision. Through my destruction of his heart shall he know my unending devotion.

That beautiful heart that opened itself completely to me will be sweet. That lovely heart, so tainted with beauty and purity and filth and decay, so flooded with light and dark, will be nourishing.

I am the consumer of souls. I am the eater of existence.

I am.

Through me, he will be made. Through me, he will be unmade. I am his creator. I am his destroyer. I am that which lets him exist. I am that which defines his existence.

His mind, his heart, his memories pain him. I will alleviate my precious child of his anguish. I will desecrate him. I will exacerbate all that causes him misery.

The creature that accompanies my shell looks upon me with worry. The creature with its aquamarine eyes looks upon me with wonder. Its voice floats – it does not exist. I do not acknowledge it. Until it has proven its usefulness, it is not real. Until it adjusts my reality, it does not live.

The rocky ledges upon which I appear come into existence as I acknowledge them. I recognize them as my environment. I bring them into reality.

The heat that caresses my skin is felt. I acknowledge it. I bring it into reality.

The creatures that swarm in the distance are seen. I acknowledge them. I bring them into reality.

I will touch them. I will break them. I will devour them.

So long have I existed that memories cannot sustain me. So long have I been that I cannot be defined. I am a Guardian Force, destroyer of memories, consumer of brainwaves, a being that nests within the subconscious of my bearer and lashes magic to my carrier's body to make him beyond human. Unlike my fellow Guardians, I have existed since the inception of time. I am raw. I am power. I am existence defined. Memories, the minds of mortals, are not enough sustenance.

The other Guardian Forces, the one who like myself is a permanent resident of this child's mind, fear me for my presence. They scamper before my hunger. They fly from my feeding grounds. Only does the Queen of Ice dare to stand before me, assisting my darling bearer in hindering my power, in chaining me into his existence, in suppressing my desires and my abilities.

But she is not present. Her power is weak, the world that is our true reality so far removed that her touch cannot reach my child here. There are no icy chains surrounding me – there is nothing to stop my consumption. Memories, mind, soul are flavorful, but after so much time in repression they do not draw my interest.

A scant flash of friends, a memory of a battle with a sorceress, a recollection of sex with a woman fall prey to me. They do not fill me. They do not quell the growling of my being. I abandon the demolition of his flickering past in pursuit of what I truly desire.

I require flesh. I demand blood. I must devour.

My dear child accepts such. He knows well the price for junctioning my power. He recognizes what I must have in exchange for invincibility.

His body responds to my wishes. He peals with the grace of a torama. His fists make short work of those corporeal beings of the rock spires. His teeth rend flesh, his throat guzzles blood, his stomach dissolves their pieces and sustains me.

He does it for me. He obeys my whim. He recognizes my existence. He realize that he exists thanks to me.

I am.

The blood and meat of my victims empowers me. I in turn empower my bearer. His mediocre wounds heal, his flesh easily knitted under my skillful ministrations. His strength grows, the power that he feeds to me returned to his muscles. His fatigue is demolished so that he might consume more.

Together, he and I lay a swath of blood in our wake. I move him with my will. I am he. He has become me.

My touch creates reality for the shadowy imaginings of the lands. My touch extinguishes that reality and enhances my own.

The shadowy being I had traveled with is. Its voice reaches my senses. Its arms are splayed to its sides as it begs for the continuation of the existence of a human.

I acknowledge the human. It exists. It stares with horror. It stares with awe. It stares with reverence.

I move along.

The one who holds this world, the one who believes that existence independent of my own is truth, is close by. I can sense it. I can feel it. I shall draw that being into reality, then I will devour it. I will take from its dying grip this world, and through me shall existence be commenced. Through me shall existence be denied. Through me shall existence be destroyed.

Instinct rather than will moves my shell. The gunblade in my hand exists. The creature that towers before me is real. I acknowledge that, allowing my weapon to make physical contact.

The creature is powerful. Its will attempts to defy my own. It breathes fire onto my dearest child, bathing us in heat. The majority of the clothing upon my body ceases to exist. I acknowledge the destruction.

My lovely bearer would be upset. He would be flustered. His memories, so delicious, direct my attention to his nature and the embarrassment he would certainly suffer.

My delicate babe would long for retribution.

I long for destruction.

I leave my mortal shell. I draw upon the energy that my child has stored, breaking from his mind and body and tearing his soul from his hollow construct. I dissolve his very essence. I destroy his carcass. I grasp those molecules and bring them under my control, drawing into being my true form.

I am.

Space, time, all creation bends to my will. The colors of my imagination spread throughout my world. The level reality that dared to oppose me bends to my longing. The rotation of the world itself stops as I demand.

I will break the creature that defies me. I will demolish it. I will decimate its spirit.

I eject it and all around it into the cold recesses of space, into the vacuum that was drawn into existence when I came into being.

I draw its shattered frame back to the ground, back to the reality I created when I was drawn by pact to planetary existence and residence in the minds of those I deem worthy to exist, those I find fit to inhabit.

I recreate my mortal shell.

The creature wails its misery. Its smoky body writhes pitifully.

It looks delicious.

I fall upon it, drawing it to my mouth, gnashing it with my teeth and swallowing it down. It roils in my stomach, nourishing me, empowering me, drawing all fatigue from our battle away with every scrumptious bite. The billowing blackness that is its construct moves swiftly through my mortal shell's system, settling for but moments in his stomach before permeating his cells and being drawn to me. I lavish the flavor. I love the sensation. Through my consumption does the prior ruler of this world come to its ultimate reality. Through my devouring does it become immortal, a part of my own essence.

I notice then that another is near me. A being survived my onslaught, rising slowly from the destroyed ground I had drawn my victim into. A long sword rests in its left hand. Glowing blue eyes acknowledge me yet shine without fear.

I do not acknowledge it. It does not exist.

The sword upon my mortal shell's skin is felt. The slicing of flesh, the tearing of skin, the dripping of blood meet my senses. I feel the remaining power from my meal flow to my child's wounds, mending his flesh instead of providing for me.

It angers me.

I acknowledge the other being. It is drawn into reality.

The human with the glowing eyes hovers off of the extirpated ground, sword in hand and murder upon its lips.

I laugh.

I am joyous.

I am lustful.

I am amused.

The human dares to believe it can face me.

I acknowledge its power, though – it withstood my initial attack. In this world of the heart, in this creation of willpower, its force of will and desire for existence is great enough to withstand the apocalypse I would create.

I will respect it.

I will show it my love.

I will display my mercy.

I will devour it, and it shall sustain me.

The blade in my mortal hands is drawn before me. My boot-covered feet slowly shuffle into an instinctual position.

My longing is drawn into reality. I bring my body to the human before me.

Our blades clash, the sound of their meeting roaring through the small arena that exists for our battle.

The explosive blast from my weapon, the harsh vibration that jolts through the hands and arms that wield it, the light of the flash of the round detonating, the burst of embers and smoke fill my mortal shell's senses. The human before me grimaces as its long sword is strained with the harsh hit, its enormous length more of a hindrance against the designed functioning of a gunblade than an assisting feature.

A few more wild slashes force the human into a quick retreat. It flips through the air, landing delicately on the floor many feet away from myself. Its lips curl with a slight scowl before it identifies me as the one who forced a being called Zachary into a battlefield he could not hope to last in, before it accuses me of tormenting a child it remembers. It snarls that it will not stand for my continued existence.

Our contest of wills begins.

My movements are swift, matching the human's in speed. My weapon's strikes are precise, deflecting every offensive blow and responding to be blocked in like by my opponent. My steps are light, carrying me with precision inhuman through our battle arena, surprisingly matched by the human who moves with leaps and bounds that are akin to flight.

It comes closer. Our blades lock. I curl my lips into a satisfied smile but millimeters from my human opponent's face.

It will be delicious.

It stares and scowls as I tell it so.

It screams in rage as I inform it that through my devouring of it shall it attain immortality. It fervently pushes away when I tell it the truth – that through becoming part of me, it shall become a god; it shall attain indestructibility and power infinite, if only through my love and appreciation of its will.

It has such a beautiful heart. So twisted and confused, pouring light and dark as rivers over waterfalls. So malevolent and so kind.

It would be a fine host, if assimilation of it did not require me leaving my precious child alone.

We clash again, it straining against me, me smiling as my body's instinctual abilities fend it off.

As my body's muscles become tired, I shuffle through my magic. Meltdown is junctioned to my strength. Flare is junctioned to my vitality. Holy is junctioned to my overall capacity to absorb damage. Triple is junctioned to my body's response time. Death is junctioned to my luck. Ultima is junctioned to my magic. Water is junctioned to my defenses against magical attacks. A quick junction of silence, float and esuna to my status immunities, a junction of blind to my weapon's strike, a junction of fira, blizzaga and thundaga to my elemental immunities and a junction of firaga to my blade's attack complete my escapades in my mortal child's mind.

He is prepared.

I am ravished.

Boosted by my magic pouring through his veins, my body responds as swiftly as I can think. The human I face shows its astonishment, its feet backpedaling on the ground, its sword barely being able to deflect my furious slashes.

A wing erupts from its back, threatening to carry it into true flight.

With every ounce of speed junctioned triples can grant, I fly to it and sink my fingers into that thin, smooth leathery limb. Curling those digits, I smile as my nails catch and rip.

The flesh I'd grasped tears easily away from the limb that had recently been made existent. Lifting it to my mouth, I chew.

Delectable.

With a furious scream, the human lunges after me with its sword.

I leap back. I smirk as it comes after me.

Wildly swung swords and errant triggered eruptions from the gunblade decimate our surroundings, destroying walls and floor and bringing the ceiling of the arena crashing down. Sky exists overhead.

As my human opponent steps back to regain its senses after my flawless defense and counterattacks, its body worn and fatigued and broken and begging for me to consume it and make it whole within me, I alight to the top of a beam of the wall we had demolished during our flight.

I will destroy it. I will devour it. I simply need to weaken it so that it cannot fight against my mercy.

I will not use my true form again – that attack, in this land, is a contest of wills. I would will the human to suffer through my might. It would will itself to live. And oddly enough, the human's will is strong enough that it is capable of resisting my wishes for its death.

I will not be denied.

I will see my opponent dead.

I will consume it.

I am the one who will bring demolition. I am the one who will end what existence I see fit to end.

I am the omega.

I am.

A contest of wills would not bring about my desires. In place of that stalemate, I will bring into being forces it cannot reckon with.

I will bring the remnants of those worlds I've demolished to it. I will rain destruction upon its skull. Its bones will crack, its body will fail, for it is but a mortal being trying to stand before a Guardian Force whose presence is that of a god.

I will break it with what has previously been broken.

And if it survives the initial onslaught, my child's mind holds ninety-nine more repetitions of this spell.

I call upon the power of the heavens. I call upon the skies. I call upon _Meteor_.

I laugh, arms spread, as my human meal falls.

I am victorious.

I am –

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

Leon: Aw, thanks so much for the review! Even not-logged reviews are cool – I do those quite often, thanks to my shipboard connection royally sucking. Eden's not really evil… she's just a creature of absolution. Neh heh heh. But I love her to pieces. And I love the horror options she opens with FF8. Fortunately the escape from Wonderland's coming up, so you can enjoy their return to normalcy(?)! Anyway, hope you liked this chapter. Next will be up soon.

Raz: (basks in review's glow, flushes brilliantly) Thank you so very much for your review! Eh heh. Yeah, that was kind of out of the blue, wasn't it? But believe it or not, that was actually pretty planned. I'm glad I can still offer up a few shocks and surprises! This just makes me dread what's coming up in the future – with the story as it is, I'm almost fearing that the plateau I'm hitting is too high for me to maintain until it's end. We'll have to see if I can keep this rhythm up. No worries – you aren't jinxing them at all. Soon things will definitely get better! The silver lining is going to show very shortly! Thank you so much for your compliments on my narrative and descriptive qualities in my writing – those comments truly do mean so very much to me. Hopefully this chapter, though a bit strange when compared to the rest, continues to fit in with your expectations!

Li the Twilight Knight: Heh heh. Sephiroth is… well, he's there. Why he's there is up to him. Mwe heh heh. And I do imagine that Zack knew Sephiroth's alive (so to say)… after all, Zack was 'mortally' wounded before Cloud faced off with our favorite carazie General-head. And I couldn't resist the pout statement. I really couldn't. (snigger) AH! You… you cad! You throw me yet another evil plushie? Augh! (runs away as they chortle in cahoots with one another)

hermione494: Heh. But 'submit' almost becomes a funny thing to listen to after you've pounded Ansem in KH:CoM a few times… now you've gone and made me bounce around in my chair and whine pitifully for KH2:FM to come out so I can play CoM on my PS2! Sheesh. Thanks for reviewing! (curtsies)

Hikari of the Moon: Woah! New reviewers who read the entire story in one massive shot get a massive prostration and slipper-kissing. (smooch) Nice to 'meet' you! Thanks so much for your assessment of my little fic – while I, being a fairly humble person and a massive critic of my own work, might disagree that's it's all that fabulous, it still makes me blush like a school girl to know that this massive chunk of work is actually loved. Sorry 'bout the number of cliffies, but… well, that's the way things worked out. (flush) All of your questions will be answered shortly, no worries there! I wish I had more to say, but this chapter did happen to eat my brain… and I have pizza in the oven. (laughs) Anyway, SO happy you're enjoying it! And hope you liked this chapter as well!

terracannon876: Thank you so much for your compliment! Personalities and proper personification of characters is something I direly strive for. Thank you for recognizing that struggle I undergo to try and bring them reasonably across! Oh, and thanks for the fav at deviantart! (hug)

Angl: Well, it's his party and he'll invite who he wants to… who said everyone's there by his choice? (cackle) Anyway, sorry about the evil cliffie, but it seemed like the perfect place to leave things off! BTW, nothing 'apparent' about it. Alex is very, very dead. And yeah, that happened in the Disney movie, too. Hence why 'The Black Hole' isn't exactly number one out of the old live-action Disney flicks – it's too violent to be considered a family-friendly number. (snicker) Oh, and no worries about the identity of our little Shadow friend. I wouldn't dare make him Demyx! Sheesh. (giggle)

Melodious Flurry: (pounces on plushie, looks wildly left and right, then absconds with it before Ansem plushie can notice that he's got competition in the 'wicked' department) Neh heh heh. Mooooore…. Aw! Do I detect sarcasm there? Sheesh. But fucking with minds is so much fun! Thanks for your compliment, and I hope this chapter met with your expectations as well.

* * *

(groans as she flicks her computer) Yeah, so I lied. Next chapter's definitely the last one in this land. Just… my drive out of Wonderland seemed almost rushed and empty without one more slide into the most odd mind of the bunch. I never thought that writing from the point of view of the most kick-ass of Guardian Forces would make me want to cry tears of blood. It's _not_ easy. (the Ansem plushie points and cackles mockingly, snarking, "What do you hope to accomplish?") Hear me now! Next chapter will be the last in Wonderland! (fist pump before yanking the plushie's string, smiling as he snarls out "SUBMIT!") 


	47. Escape

Alrighty. This chapter takes place in relative conjunction with the last one. Just to avoid any confusion.

There's a Christmas present picture up on my deviantart account if you're a fan of this story. Or if you like the idea of nekkid Cloud and Leon (with considerable censorship, but oh well). The link's on my profile page – first link there, actually. :)

Expect one more chapter of this story before I go on leave. I'm just going to wrap up a pivotal point – the conclusion of the Sora cliffhanger will have to wait until January.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or American McGee's Alice. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 47  
The Gummi Expert – Escape

I clamped my hand over my mouth, trying to stop my guts from exploding out of my mouth.

Colors were veritably dancing before my eyeballs as nausea raced through my veins and threatened to turn me inside out in every imaginable way. I was leaning heavily on my spear for support, its butt planted on the ground and my hand curled tightly around its haft right below the sharply pointed metal head.

A crack and a crunch forced me to close my eyes completely. I tried my damnedest to block out the screaming and the dripping of hot blood, the thud of a now dead body hitting the ground and the soft chuckling that oozed over every other sound that surrounded me.

See, last five minutes had been pretty fucking interesting.

First, that idiot that's infesting Cloud's body went charging into the little house he suspected was the Jabberwock's lair. I tried to chase after him, but all the Jabberspawn and the Heartless he flew right past kinda got in my way. Rather like a big living wall of crappy fucktards that refused to let me get to my would-be companion's side. So there I was, out on this dainty fucking porch overlooking the fires of Hell, slashing away at seemingly unending hordes of fleshy victims when I hear some deep, guttural voice snark about how we can't hope to defeat it if we can't defeat our own insanity. Fucking bunch of shit, I thought.

Well, then I heard Cloud's voice screaming bloody fucking murder. This huge waft of heat comes blasting from the inside of that quaint house. So I figure this Zack moron just got my friend fucking murdered. God damned idiot. I was gonna fucking shove my spear up his ass until it came outta his mouth once I was done with that fucking Jabberwock for doing that to that miserable little blond I'd come over the years to consider a friend!

Anyway, too many damned Jabberspawn (those fuckers are tough bitches to kill, lemme tell ya) and Heartless stood in my way. And those fucking Neo-Shadows and Wyverns that were forming were being joined by more of Wonderland's fucking fun-loving little denizens of evil, the little devil imps.

Just when things started looking like they'd be fucking impossible for me to deal with and I was about to say my fond farewells to the probability of ever getting back to see that sweet li'l Aerith, Tifa, Barrett, Red and retard Yuffie ever again, what I'd thought would be my salvation showed up.

See, as soon as I was able to turn my attention away from the front door to that cozy cottage, no one other than my little Shadow buddy showed up! Never been so fucking happy to see a Heartless arrive.

He went running right for me, his croquet mallet held to his chest. Taking a moment to swing it wildly at one of those little devil imp guys that was a might bit too damned close for comfort and knocking it away with the power he put into that hit, the Heartless stood by my knee and puffed for breath. "Nice to see you, Cid!" he cheerfully proclaimed.

"Nice ta see you too, kiddo," I replied even as I had spun my spear to poke one of those fucking Heartless Wyverns that was approaching us. "Where the fuck's Crazy Bastard Leonheart?"

A soft gulp emerged from my Shadowy friend before he just looked up at me with aquamarine eyes flooded with utter terror.

Then, speak of the fucking devil, Leon showed up.

And it certainly wasn't the Leon I'd been expecting.

See, I'd been thinking that he'd just tromp up, all animalistic and fierce, demanding to see Cloud and running that fucking gunblade of his through anything in his way.

I hadn't been expecting opalescent eyes and a slow, confident walk that had him approaching our enemies with no show of preparation to use that damned glowing blue blade of his.

"Leon! What the fuck do you think you're doing, you fucking psychopath?" I shouted. "Don't'cha think a weapon-"

The Heartless pulled on my arm, shaking his head. "Just focus on the enemies we've got here. Don't… don't draw his attention."

Moments later, I'd found out why the Heartless gave me that warning.

See, I was dumb enough to watch him. I figured he was being an idiot, approaching with way too much confidence and not enough sense.

Then he leaped with casual ease on the back of one of those god damned draconic Jabberspawn, his lips curled in a smirk. His gunblade was flung to the ground as he opted instead to use nothing but his fists.

Just as I'd been 'bout to scream at him again, he punched the lizard in the back of its fucking ugly head. I'd been more than a little shocked when that skull crunched audibly, the creature roaring in pain as blood spurted from its eyeballs and its nostrils.

Then Leon'd drawn his hand away from the monster's head, his fingers curled around the fatty gray matter within its cranium. Lifting it to his mouth, he took a bite and chewed.

Yeah, that's when I got a bit wheezy.

Next he'd jumped from the back of that lizard to the ground, letting its body fall over with no regard as to where it landed. His hand curled onto an imp's head, lifting it clear off its feet. As it dropped its pitchfork, he drove his hand right into its chest.

It was screaming, its eyes huge, as he ripped its still-beating heart from its chest and sank his teeth into it. Blood ran down his arm even as the creature twitched its last and hung limp in his grip.

That was when I'd planted the end of my spear against the ground, leaving the Heartless with the task of defending me – little Shadow was wielding that mallet of his like a pro, smackin' the shit out of anything that dared to get close to me. More than capable. Fact is, I was listening to the sizzle of electricity being flung from that wicked weapon of his flare at the edge of my hearing almost more than I was hearing the skittering of monsters' footsteps now.

Then Leon's lips had curled with a sneer, blood dripping from his chin and staining his teeth. _"Delicious,"_ he softly breathed.

I was enraptured with sheer horror, watching was he curled his free hand around one of the dangling demon imp's arms. Holding its head firmly, he tore the thing apart, shoving the meaty arm he ripped clean off the rest of its body into his mouth and chomping down on it, his teeth grinding apart flesh and bone.

Everything else was staring. I could feel it – I wasn't the only horrified audience he had.

I felt the first threat of nausea wash over me as he dropped the remains of the little carcass next to his foot and lifted the hand that had been horribly stained by blood, that hand that had plunged into the critter's chest and ripped limbs from its corpse. Lifting his fingers before himself, he smiled serenely at the blood that colored his flesh.

Then he started licking it off himself, his tongue lapping at his nails and his fingers and his palm, suckling almost obscenely at the fluid that stained him, his eyes fluttering closed in near orgasmic pleasure.

Moments later he'd laughed as a Neo-Shadow tried to run away from him, springing on it like a lion on the hunt.

It was then that I'd shut my eyes, listening to the crunching and cracking of breaking bones, the screaming of dying enemies, the ripping of flesh being torn from skeletal frames and the slathering chewing that was Leon literally consuming everything that stood in our ways.

Then the little Heatless' panicked voice brought me out of my disgusted state.

He was shouting to Leon that I wasn't an enemy and that I'd willingly help him get to the guy that was standing between him and the destruction of the world.

The fuck!

Opening my eyes, I first shot a harsh stare down at the Shadow, feeling slightly miffed when I noted that his attention was nowhere near me. He was staring right at Leon.

So I did too.

He stood before us, his entire body drenched with blood and that black shit Heartless leave when they die, his gunblade retrieved and dangling almost limply from his fingers. Opalescent eyes stared blandly at us, lips pressed in a bland and expressionless line.

Oh fucking hell….

Swallowing any sort of pride or concern that'd drive me to say anything incredibly stupid, I simply nodded instead and pointed towards the entrance to the house. "In there. The Jabberwock's the ruler of this place. Fact is, fucktard Cloud's in there tryin' to put him down now."

The creature that Leon had become turned and strode confidently towards the entrance to the house.

Me and the Shadow stared at each other. "The fuck?" I began.

"Don't ask me. He's been like this ever since he got walloped hard in our fight against the Mad Hatter. He's professing he's something called 'Eden,' the apparent conglomeration of fear and terror. Destroyer of worlds. So on and so forth."

"Woah. And here I thought Cloud was fucked up," I breathed.

"Nope. Compared to this, Cloud's multiple personalities seem fairly tame," the Shadow replied.

"How's this fit into your 'degradation of the mind' theory, kiddo?" I said with a slight smirk.

Shaking his head, the Shadow stared at me for a few moments before returning his focus to the door Leon had just passed through. "I don't think this 'Eden' is a part of Leon's psyche at all. It almost seems like an entirely different entity – like the Ego and Superego were all that was holding it back. So when Wonderland destroyed all that was left of those two parts of his psychological construct and only Id was left, there was nothing to hold this thing in check."

"Fuck," I snorted.

"All of that aside," the Shadow said with a shrug, "we'd better get in there. Even as Eden, I don't want him to have to face the Jabberwock alone. And I want to make certain he doesn't try to eat Cloud for an extra jolt of energy or something."

I felt my face pale. "Eh, good point," I swiftly confirmed before straightening my stance and marching to that door.

I almost dropped my spear when I witnessed exactly what was going on.

Yeah, there was a big fucking Jabberwock. At least, that's what I assume the giant draconic thing with its furnace chest with the Heartless emblem on it was. Big, gangly, fire seething between its fangs, giant claws scratching at the ground and big clawed hands grasping at empty air as huge mechanical wings with leather stretching between steely supports flapped around lazily. Looked like something out of a nightmare – I might've been a bit scared if it weren't for the fact that everything in this fucked up place looked like a demented horror writer's wet dream.

Yeah, there was Leon. Or rather, what was left of Leon. He was standing near the back wall of the house, the area around him completely ablaze. He didn't seem to have a single mark on him, amazingly enough, though his clothes told the tale of being bathed in flame pretty astutely – he was damned near bare, the tiniest remains of his pants preserving his questionable dignity, his boots on his feet and that damned pendant of his laying on his slightly hair-speckled chest. His gunblade was hanging loosely from his right hand's fingers, his left hand resting cockily on his hip as he leered at the towering monster in the room's center.

What had me damned close to fainting was Cloud.

See, the fucking idiot wasn't parading around on the ground flailing about with his sword like I was expecting.

Nope, First Tsurugi was actually lying at my feet.

He was hovering in the air a good fifteen feet off the ground and glaring right at the Jabberwock's big empty yellow eyeballs.

And he had Masamune in his left hand.

Oh dearest heavens….

The little Shadow Heartless certainly didn't have the hesitations I had. Running right in, he screeched to a halt a few yards off from the Jabberwock and held out his clawed hand. A sparkle of electricity and the smell of ozone flooded the atmosphere as a ball of blue lightning formed upon the tips of those sharp digits of his.

Even as I bent at the waist and hefted First Tsurugi from its impromptu resting place, the Shadow started everything off by batting that ball of lightning at the Jabberwock's head with eerie accuracy using that mallet of his.

Next thing, he and I were both scampering with cries on our lips as a gout of flame was shot from the monster's giant maw directly at us.

Sad to say, that pretty croquet mallet of his went up in smoke. Fortunately I got Cloud's monstrous bit of metal compensation out of the way.

Even as I was busily lashing that giant fucking sword to my back using the thick sash I typically wore around my waist, the Heartless was pulling that butcher knife of his outta… well, I just don't wanna know.

That's when Cloud sprang into action.

With an eerily familiar swipe of Masamune, the blond's lips curled with a smirk and he chuckled softly. "Such an insignificant obstacle. You dare believe you can stand before me? I shall color the path to godhood with your blood!" he professed before flying directly at the Jabberwock, sword leading the way.

The air roared with the thick slashing of giant sword through flesh from Masamune. The Jabberwock's voice rumbled in pain even as its eyes sprang wide open.

Cloud was bathed in horribly bright, searing light.

Beams had erupted from the Jabberwock's eyeballs, shooting like lasers and burning whatever stood in the way of that gaze. At the moment, Cloud was the unfortunate victim, knocked right out of the air and being burned to a crisp. Then the Heartless was drawing its attention, scampering up to the monster and flinging his knife right into one of its eyeballs to turn off the laser light show.

As the Shadow ran amuck and scampered from that monster's flailing claws and bursts of fiery breath, I jogged to Cloud's side. "You alright?"

Scoffing, he rose from the crater his body had made in the wood flooring and dusted himself off. "Fine. It will take more than such to bring me down. Mother would be disappointed if I were to be defeated so easily."

Yeah, I scrambled back a few steps. I feel no shame in that, either.

Meanwhile, Leon had just finished up whatever mental conversation he was having with himself, those opalescent eyes of his staring at the Jabberwock. They narrowed. I swear I could see lightning fucking flashing out of them.

The Shadow was running to us, standing before me an' Cloud as some sort of shield, his little knife held up to defend us from both monster and companion.

And then Leon slowly vanished.

As the world began to fade to black around us, a spotlight of glaring white surrounding the Jabberwock, the Heartless yelped loudly and quickly plopped a pocket watch out of… once again, I don't wanna know where the hell he'd had that stored.

Next thing I knew, I was being dragged by the Heartless' little self outside. We were on the porch. Cloud, who'd been right beside me, dashed back into the house with his eyes narrowed and watching the show that was going on.

Then the ground became a multi-colored wavy mess, gridlines tracing themselves all over the fucking place.

The grid curled – I brought my eyes up to trace it, and found myself sucking my breath through my teeth.

The Jabberwock was being thrust into the air above some big… fuck if I can describe the thing! Big ass floating thing. Something out of an artist's most fucked up dream. Something beautiful yet horrible and fucking scary all at the same time. Something with boobies and no fucking legs with arms stuffed into some defunct looking halo-majob. Something that….

Something that just shot the fucking Jabberwock into space in a column of light.

The air surrounding us was sucked violently away. I was clinging to the porch, screaming my lungs out, trying not to get blown away. Tears streamed out of my fucking eyeballs even as my lungs cried for air.

Then whatever it was that was hovering in the air faded away. Moments later, the Jabberwock plummeted out of the sky and crashed right through the house's roof even as the atmosphere explosively banged shut around us again, letting poor saps like me draw nice tasty gulps of putrid but necessary air. Leon pounced on his fallen enemy as I was gasping for breath.

Cloud was struggling to his feet, having apparently been swept up with the Jabberwock and pummeled into the ground too. Bleeding profusely, he scowled before hovering into the air, his Mako eyes glowing with madness even as Leon got busy eating.

"Cloud!" the Heartless shouted, holding one of his clawed hands out in a desperate effort to draw the blond's attention.

Laying a hand on his shoulder, I shook my head. "No use there, Shadow. He's not gonna listen to you."

Bowing his head, he sighed quietly.

"By the way, what the fuck was all that?" I questioned, arching a brow.

Another voice burst into reality, one I'd been half expecting but one that still startled the shit out of me. "The compilation of madness. So strange to see that even the insane can manage to rid Wonderland of the darkness that plagues it."

"Heh. Was wonderin' when you'd show up, you mangy fuck," I snarled at the Cheshire Cat. "Gonna show yourself?"

Even as the Cat faded into reality on the railing of the porch, it sneered at us, its ears laying back. "The Heartless Jabberwock is no more, its very essence consumed and destroyed. The tether that ties darkness to Alice's mind is severed. The impossible has been accomplished, yet at what price? My innate caution is overridden by my appreciation for your efforts, by my astonishment at the sacrifices you have made for our salvation."

"So you'll show me where my fucking ship is?" I bit sharply, staring at the mangy critter with huge eyes.

"As was agreed upon. You have freed Alice's madness-plagued mind of the overbearing weight of darkness. You shall be guided to your path to freedom."

Then the fucker faded away!

"You lousy bastard!" I screamed, springing up to my feet and wildly shaking my spear.

"No, wait! Look where the Cat was!" the Heartless excitedly professed.

I stared. I stared as hard as I could. Then I felt like smacking my own fucking forehead.

The gummi was sitting right there behind the fucking house. Right in plain sight – and I'm willin' to bet, hidden from plain sight until the Cat felt like revealing it to us.

I was at my gummi in a matter of seconds, my arms laying on its smooth sides and tears threatening to spill out of my eyes. A few more seconds saw the hatch opened and Cloud's lousy fucking sword lobbed into the interior of the ship.

"Cid…? What do we do about them?" the Heartless' voice drifted.

Turning, I balked as I saw what he was talking about.

There was Leon, his arms spread and his lips curled with a wild smile, his feet planted on a beam of a now demolished wall of the house. And there was Cloud, hovering in the air before him, Masamune at the ready and murder in his eyes.

"Oh fuckberries," I growled. "Well, get the fucking gunblade. I'll see what I can do about the idiots."

I gripped my spear tightly, approaching the two morons as stealthily as I could. When I got to that demolished wall and saw the Heartless dragging the gunblade with all of his wee might, I grumbled in dismay.

The Leon took care of Cloud for me – the fucker flung a hand forward, his creepy voice snapping, _"Meteor!"_

And sure 'nuff, there was Meteor. No black materia. No godhood necessary. Just flung out there like it was a common spell, like a Fire 1 or a Bolt 1! Fucking hell.

So yeah, Cloud hit the ground. Fucking idiot didn't even dodge – his eyes were shifting back and forth like he was arguing with himself instead of focusing on the fact that Leon was mooshing his face in with rocks from above.

And with a sweep of my spear that managed by a miracle to catch Leon's heel and knock him off balance, Leon hit the ground too.

With both of 'em unconscious, one from being waylaid by Meteor and the other from crackin' his fool head open on a rock when he fell off his perch like a moron, they were pretty easy to heft into the gummi. Hell, they both managed to drool their way right through me tetherin' their asses down so they didn't go flopping around during liftoff. Cloud was strapped into a chair with every strand of rope I had onboard, just in case his ever so friendly personality didn't leave once we were clear of Wonderland. Crazy Bastard Leonheart got locked in the engine room for the same reason.

With a sigh of relief and a lack of caring about the fact that the gummi was still royally fucked and unable to enter hyperspace again with that disabled warp gummi an' all, I slammed the hatch to the outside world shut.

"I don't think I've ever been happier," the Shadow breathed even as he hopped into the chair at my side. Pulling his belt over his lap and buckling it swiftly, he sighed heartily and just about melted into the cushions.

"I thoroughly agree," I said with a smirk. My last cigarette from that pack in my pants managed to make it to my lips.

With a puff of glorious nicotine, we blasted off into space, finally free of Wonderland.

Good fucking riddance.

_-to be continued-_

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Well, the end got a bit rushed, but I was pushing my page limit and I really, really wanted to get the heck out of Wonderland in this chapter. Sorry!

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Review replies:

terracannon876: Heh heh. Strange? Nah. Not when the character's as wondrously odd as an ancient Guardian Force. At least you're not scared of the authoress! (cute grin, flutters eyelashes, collapses as she's accosted by the Ansem plushie for displaying false innocence) Thanks for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: Aw. I thought it was clear enough that it was Eden. Oh well. At least the writing style was appropriate for it. For your inquiries, Sephy probably would indeed kill you for calling him Sephy. And as for the end of that battle, its results… well, you just read 'em, right? (laughs) Almost kind of cheesy, but… that's the way things go sometimes. But at least we're down to one cliffie now! (arm pump) Thanks so much for the compliment and the review, and hope you liked this chapter!

scarlettHuntress: Yeah, the gore is fun. Really fun. Mwe heh heh. Sheesh! No care for Sora? Still? Aww. He'd be so miserably sad if he was real! And… well… I can't explain why Sephiroth jumped in. He just did. You can't stop him when he is determined about something. (smirk) Wing. Tasty. Like chicken. Thanks for the review(s)!

Raz: I'm so happy you liked the Eden chapter, and even happier that it seemed to come off effortlessly – in reality, that was the hardest chapter ever to type, perhaps standing on par only with chapter 41 of this story. Trying to navigate the mind of an ancient god and type from the point of view of something that transcends human understanding is impossibly difficult, and it's very pleasing to know that my efforts were successful. That chapter was one in which I could explore Eden – some people write her as an evil beast, some people write her as an ultimate good-guy; I've always seen her as something above and beyond the ideas of good and evil, and tried desperately to display that. And… eh… (flush) well, Eden wanted a taste. I couldn't stop her! Really! Eh heh. At least she didn't eat all of Cloud down. Please stop glaring! (withers away under glower) And you know, you're the only person thus far to catch and comment on the very obvious FF7 reverences. :) Yeah, trigger words much. The results thereof won't be displayed until a few chapters from now, but yeah. BTW, you had me cackling like mad at your 'see that pretty Meteor? Try batting that one out of the park with that oversized sword' statement.

Iaveina: Aw, thank you so much! I'm glad you like the story. Hope you liked this chapter as well!

DarkStarPhoenix: Yep, that certainly is Sephiroth parading about, attempting to slaughter our cuddly confused Guardian Force junctioning gunblader. Huzzah! And Alex's death? Disturbing? Heh. Almost par for the course in this ever so friendly Disney movie. Glad it had an impact, though! As for Eden being full of herself… well, since you don't care that she's practically a deity, I'll just shut up. (laughs) And no worries about not reviewing for the last couple chapters – we all have lives that occupy our time; this I fitfully realize. I just appreciate reviewing period! Thank you!

Melodious Flurry: YAH! (manic pounce, snatches plushie, looks around and dashes off with it) … What can I say? I like the cranky asinine characters. Like Cid from FF7. Seifer and Squall from FF8. Auron from FFX. Paine from X-2. Captain Matthews, my boozer-god, from Xenosaga – he would so be mine if he was real (right after I stole his ball cap). (blinks) Whaaaa? Oh. Yeah. Meteor. I heart that spell in FF8. So easy to draw! Zank you for reviews! (skips away, plushie in death-grip)

Kitty Kyinsky: Kind of cool how that works sometimes, isn't it? Wait for awhile, and you get waylaid by a truck-load of new chapters. :) Anyway, so glad you liked the vision of Cid; I can't help but snicker whenever I pass over that looking through for editing errors and typos. It just came quite naturally… and it couldn't be helped. As for Sephiroth in Zack's head… well, he was his General, neh? And tough as nails and what not, right? Yeah, they're all nuts. (cackle) Eden going away? Ha ha! Never! Well… we'll see what happens where that's concerned. And as for the Shiva reference, that came from how my game played out – Shiva's compatibility with Squall soared with every summon to the point that she was at 1000 by the time I went to the freaking Fire Cavern to beat down Ifrit. Really helped getting the max points out of that challenge – she finished off the flaming puppy of doom with two seconds to spare. It's nice starting off at SeeD level 9. Heh heh. But she progressed faster than anyone else with each summon, it seemed, so I always came to the natural conjunction that Shiva and Squall are made for each other. (snerk) Glad you liked it! And hope you liked this chapter!

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(dances around in circles) NO MORE WONDERLAND! Huzzah! (cuddles her flailing Ansem plushie as it gurgles out "SUBMIT!") Well, now I can finally take some steps towards a few goals I've had in mind since I started writing this thing. Yippee! 


	48. Reset

(lifts her fingers from the keyboard) Alright. Last post until I get back from my vacation. Enjoy… as much as you can! (whimpers as she kicks the chapter)

Thank you guys so much! BCD's broken the 200 review mark. As a sign of my gratitude, there's a little sampling of my crappy doodling skills up on my deviantart account in recognition of this event. Please enjoy it! (link to my deviantart account is on my profile (first available link), if you want to check it out!)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 48  
The Heartless – Reset

I curled my claws sharply into the armrests of the chair I'd buckled myself into as the gummi ship lurched almost painfully off of the ground it was on and struggled into the air. A lag, a subtle drop in altitude, a jump of my innards into my throat passed in a moment's time.

Then, with a rush and a blast of noise, the craft finally burst into frantic motion.

The engines whined piteously, their wounded cries barely concealed by their angered roar as they shoved us away from what had become a veritable Hell. Clouds peeled away before us, their orange-tinged coloration parting swiftly and whirling helplessly as we shoved our way through them. Red sky splayed before us, a threatening hiss of the state of Wonderland.

But soon it was fading – the red became tinged with darkness, oozing into a dark maroon then a crimson before becoming nothing more than the midnight of space with its speckled stars reaching as far as the eye could see.

I slumped in my chair, prying my claws out of the soft cushiony rests they'd sunk into. A slight shake of my hands waved the fluffy stuffing of those armrests from my digits' terminations.

Looking out of the window, I tried as hard as I could to assess the situation.

We'd managed to escape the mind-bending Wonderland. We'd actually seen the Jabberwock's Heartless defeated, leaving only the empty shell (the Nobody, a voice whispered in my mind) for Alice to overcome. The White Rabbit had become aware of Wonderland's plight and was off to inform the girl so she could begin the long journey towards sanity. The Mad Hatter's other self had met a grisly end, ensuring that at least a portion of her tremulous trek would be free of additional opposition. The tether that drew the Heartless to the land behind the Looking Glass, that influence that allowed them to continue their existence in the mirror-land untouched by the light of the Keyblade Master, was severed and done. No more Heartless would be rising on either side of the Looking Glass, especially with the keyhole shut on one side and the anchor destroyed on the other.

Yeah, it was good.

Even as I turned my head to look at Cid, I found myself marveling as his skin slowly lightened and smoothed. His grin was becoming more of a smile around that cigarette dangling between his lips and less of a grimace of promised death. His hands were less gnarled, less hooked and deathly gripped on the gummi's steering wheel.

He'd become once more what he'd been when I'd first met him in the fortification I'd appeared in when I'd passed from the darkness of Kingdom Hearts.

A look back almost made me shout for joy.

Cloud no longer looked like a dismal corpse – his cheeks were filled out, his skin shone a healthy soft flesh-tone rather than white, his lips were full and pink and his nails were clear rather than blue on his fingers. His body was fleshy, not at all overweight but not skeletal. Even his hair was perkier, its spikes defying gravity as well as they ever had. In fact, the only effect he carried from Wonderland was a missing chunk of that leathery wing of his.

I didn't dare go back to check on Leon yet – his behavior still had me incredibly terrified of him.

I slumped heavily in my seat as I began to reflect on the bad.

Our gummi was still in need of service, its warp engine destroyed. My companions had just been through Hell, their mentalities broken and their sanity shattered. There was no way to judge what lasting effects would remain. Cloud showed physical damage – who knows what psychological damage would be left? Who could know if Cid's depressive tendencies would remain buried under his gruff attitude? Who could tell if whatever that was that Leon unleashed would be buried back wherever it was hidden before once he became conscious?

Raising my gaze, I looked out of the window.

I almost fell flat on my face as I unbuckled my seatbelt and jumped out of my seat.

There was another world out there!

Maybe there we'd be able to find what we needed to repair the gummi!

Turning to Cid, I brightly proclaimed my find.

I was stunned when my voice didn't flow.

He turned to me, his mouth moving, some random noises filling the atmosphere.

He was talking to me, but once again I couldn't understand him.

As his expression became a touch befuddled, I slowly turned, harsh reality buffeting me solidly over my antennae-bearing head. My recollections of what we had just gone through remained clear, but before that… before I'd emerged from the darkness….

I knew that in Wonderland I was able to regain a touch of myself. It may have been myself and another, but still one of them was myself.

And now, I could feel that touch rapidly slipping away.

The emptiness in my chest panged.

As I turned back to the window and pointed at what I'd seen, I almost wished that the tears I longed to shed could well up in my eyes.

Instead, they remained as dry as they always were, their yellow coloration staring blankly back at me from my reflection in the cockpit's glass.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies:

Melodious Flurry: (curtsies) Thank you so very much for your compliments and review! I'm certain our two FF hero types will be alright… mostly. Neh heh. I actually have that planned out. For once, even! (snatches plushie, absconds with it) Mmmm…. Sephy plushie. (cackles)

terracannon876: Well, what can I say? I think everyone in FF7 would flip out seeing FF8 magic. The draw system is helluv strange compared to the materia system (though the draw system is what I prefer… ;). Aw. The Cheshire Cat's not meant to be foreboding… (has her mouth clamped shut by the Ansem plushie, who cackles that she's lying through her teeth)

scarlettHuntress: Merry Christmas to you too (a bit belated now – we'll say Happy New Year, since I won't be around for it)! Huzzah for out of Wonderland. Thanks for reviewing!

DarkStarPhoenix: Well, one thing that everyone seemed to kind of forget – yes, Eden and Sephiroth were out, but they're still inhabiting the bodies of their respective human beings, and Leon and Cloud were really beat to hell thanks to their escapades through Wonderland. And a human being smacking its head into a rock hard enough to be concussed isn't getting up any time soon. (laughs) As for Cloud's 'injuries,' we'll simply have to wait and see. Ooo! Winged Cloud! (dances around with new plushie) You know… if only these things were real. I'd be the freaking plushie queen by now. (smirk)

ChibixLeon: Hey again! Thanks for the review. Gaw, so jealous – we have to be sneaky as all get-out if we're going to drink at work. (won't say I haven't done it before – New Years Eve last year was spent drunk, despite the fact that we were 3 days out of Dubai and floating in the middle of the Persian Gulf. Ha ha.) Leon and Cloud smuttiness is actually coming up pretty swiftly. Maybe just a few more chapters. And you find Cid and the Heartless' fear amusing? Sheesh! I'd be pretty scared, too. (laughs) Glad you liked the chapter, and glad you liked the picture!

Raz: Glad I could make your Christmas Eve! Heh. I'm certain that Cid and the Heartless truly enjoy their place at the top of your list right now. The repercussions for the actions of Wonderland will indeed be… eh… I won't say fun, but I will say intriguing. :) Yeah, the idea of no more Wonderland is one that's almost frightening, but no worries! There's plenty more in store for them all! Thanks for the review, BTW. As always, your compliments make me flush and flitter with glee!

Hikari of the Moon: Aw, thanks for the Christmas review! (cuddles her new Sora plushie) So cute. Neh heh heh. Yeah, being out of Wonderland's a marvelous feeling. Glad it's reciprocated amongst my readers! And I'm glad you liked the other POV of the battle – Cid's always a joy to type from, though. His cynicism is so much damned fun! And, well, perhaps Sora will get more love with the next couple of worlds… far be it from me to spew spoilers, though! Mwa ha ha. Just have to wait and see. Anyway, glad you liked it! (takes a moment to ward off the cackling plushie whose celebrating the spreading of his fanbase)

Li the Twilight Knight: Coolies! Library visit! Huzzah. (grin) Thanks so much for the review! Yeah, poor Zack had to bite it. Couldn't have him running amuck for the rest of the fic, after all! Then there'd be no hope for CL humpi.. uh, happiness! Yeah! (cough cough) Thanks for the hugs and plushies, too. :)

Demon fritillary: First off, I love your pen name:) Secondly, holy smokes! All of it in a row? Wowzers. You've got some fanfic reading stamina. Especially if you're including the A/Ns, review replies and optional chapters! And noooooow, time for the obscenely long reply to your review. (cackle) To start: I actually like a well written first person. I'm glad I've avoided the hate you normally have for them! My use of repetition does get a bit… yes, repetitious, but I more or less was using it at times to illustrate the degradation of our friendly neighborhood Heartless' brain. I'll take the warning onboard, though, and attempt to avoid overuse in the future. And Sora? Getting on your nerves? (kicks at the ground) Seems like he gets on _everyone's _nerves. Feh. Poor kid – just because he's a pointless, clueless little goober. And because Riku's so much cooler. Kind of like Cloud and Sephiroth – if you could've played FF7 from Seph's POV, imagine how cool _that_ would've been! Well, with the exception of being dead and encased in a Mako crystal and all that. Point being, cooler character got cast as the bad guy. Or like if you could've had Seifer in your party instead of Zell in FF8… (drools all over herself) Ahem. Tangent over. I'm glad that I was able to catch many of the game dynamics – I kind of thought Riku looked melancholic, though. Maybe it's just my bad eyes combined with the somewhat mediocre graphics of that scene. Nothing was quoted so far as the KH characters are concerned, actually! Believe it or not. However, all of 'Pete's Dragon' and 'The Black Hole' use the movie scripts, just with some added conversations and interactions involving the KH guys, so they remain rather true to their original formats. As for how complicated my plot gets… well, compared to some of the ones I've written for Gundam W, this seems rather tame, but it has at least some substance behind it. I try not to use the patented 'KH magic, therefore it is' perspective that so many others utilize (including the game designers at times – my head exploded when I tried to put the entire KH universe into perspective, then my aircraft carrier sailed through the plot holes). As for your confusion about the phonetic spelling of the mouse's name when Cloud's 'studying' in Hollow Bastion… it's the Mickey Mouse March! It was sung every day on the Mickey Mouse Club! That's, like, classic Disney television! (whines, feels really, really damned old because she remembers it) Sorry that chapter 7 lost you, but those were Leon, the Heartless, Sephiroth and Vexen from KH:CoM downstairs. Vexen's so awesome. (cackle) Sorry 'bout your grimacing about my dramatic effect at the end of chapter… I think it was 8 or 9. Yeah, kind of cheese, but there was no other way that I could think to wrap it up… well, 'least for that day he 'never' opened his eyes! (bashfully slinks away before she can cram her foot any further into her mouth) next up… _play FF8_. Squall kicks booty. Rinoa is a moron who needs to have her head pushed through a meat grinder, but Squall kicks booty. And Irvine is the _shit._ I heart Irvine. S&R slash will have to wait. (smirk) Sorry. Aerith is a pest in fanfiction because people don't know how to write her, or feel they must vilify her to keep the potential for Cloud/Aerith pairings completely at bay. And glad you liked 17! That chapter was a challenge. I look forward to future reviews! Hope you liked this chapter… even though it kind of sucked. (whimper) And sorry for the long reply, but hey! It was a long review. :P

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(curls her arms around her Shadow Heartless plushie and sobs pathetically) I didn't wanna! I had to do it! I don't want short Heartless chapters, but the old chapter rules are back in place! Blame the evil plushie. (Ansem plushie strikes a triumphant pose before squealing "SUBMIT!") 


	49. Plunge

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Hole. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 49  
The Keyblade Master – Plunge 

I stood at the back of the bridge near the elevator, my hand still gripping Ultima Weapon tightly as I glowered at Dr. Reinhardt's back. Before us, a great ebon abyss in a sea of softly lit space, the black hole loomed menacingly. Light whirled carelessly along its edges, racing with certainty into its all-encompassing center.

As the ship rumbled, my view out of the front window of the vessel I was standing on becoming more and more focused on that deadly rift in space's black middle, I felt my legs shake violently. My hand tightened its grip on the Keyblade. I felt my knuckles go white.

Donald and Goofy would wait for me. I doubted highly that they'd believe Hans Reinhardt's proclamation that I'd chosen to remain aboard the _Cygnus_. If nothing else, Donald would be marching his fool way to the bridge to lecture me to death.

I sincerely hoped that he would remain seated onboard the gummi and grouse for at least a little while longer, though.

I had to escape before my comrades could reach me - if they entered the madhouse the bridge of the _Cygnus_ had so suddenly become, they'd be trapped as firmly as myself, the lives of our newest friends used as our prison's secure bars to hold us in place.

Taking a deep breath, I took a step forward. The whirring of a sentry robot beside me put me at an instantaneous halt.

"Take no further steps, Sora. I wouldn't want to think you hold hostile intentions towards me," Dr. Reinhardt's chilling voice oozed to me.

"If I put down Ultima Weapon, can I approach?" I narrowed my eyes, hoping beyond hope that he'd agree to my terms.

I wanted to talk sense to the man - if nothing else, enough sense that he would release myself and Kate. As things were going, we were both going to be victims to his madness.

A sneer curled his lips as he turned to face me, his dark eyes glimmering in the flickering lights that glowed about the bridge from different instrumentation panels scattered about the enormous room. "Come now. That weapon appears in your hand when you call it - you so truly think I would put myself at risk by allowing you to approach?"

Damn it.

Gritting my teeth tightly, I glowered at the floor. The man was more intelligent than so many others I'd encountered in the past - he wasn't one to take any risks at all. No risks other than barreling into the center of a black hole, an adventure he'd calculated for years on end, at least.

"Fine. But why won't you have me escorted back? And Ms. Kate as well?" Lifting my gaze, I stared hopefully at him. Even if I couldn't speak sense into him at a reasonable distance, I was certain I had enough force in my lungs to project my objections to our eminent death all the way across the bridge. "What are you hoping to do by keeping us here?"

His sneering lips twisted, the expression on his face deepening and darkening considerably as he clenched his gnarled hands atop his control console that lay about his high-backed leather chair. "What do I hope? I hope to keep Ms. Kate from any efforts to ruin my journey. Her unfortunate discoveries and her quickly deduced hypotheses about my actions regarding my crew make her a danger not only to my person, but to everything aboard the _Cygnus_. I will not have her interfere with all I have dedicated my life towards. She will not ruin my life's work. She will not stop this most important of man's journeys."

"And me...?"

"You, dear boy, would assist her in stopping me," he reasonably decided with a chuckle.

Well, he was completely right. A scowl turned my lips and glistened in my eyes before I looked away from the wily doctor.

As the robots at my back and my sides whirred with artificial impatience while awaiting a simple movement from me to justify their lust for attack, I watched as that black hole loomed.

My teeth ground audibly as Dr. Reinhardt turned his head slowly even as his giant Maximilian descended from its place. As the bronzed horror approached, its red-stained blades held firmly at its side, its master lifted his glistening dark eyes to its red vision-permitting slit. "The time has come to liquidate our guests," he said softly.

"You bastard!" I snapped.

Leaping from my place by the door, Ultima Weapon leading the way, I crashed solidly into one of the sentry robots with its laser-toting arms that was beside me. It and I firmly collided with the ground.

It was then that I discovered that robots don't give nearly as easily as Heartless under the might of the Keyblade.

I vaguely heard Hans Reinhardt's voice order his humanoid crew to fire the _Cygnus'_ thrusters as I finally managed to roll underneath the robot I'd attack and kick it away with every ounce of strength I'd built fighting Riku over the years.

By the time I stood back up, the robots were ready. One grabbed my right arm, another my left. The one I'd kicked off twitched uselessly, sparks flying from its helmet.

As I hung impotently between my captors, I growled low in my throat. "You-"

"Calm yourself, Sora," Dr. Reinhardt said softly, his eyes narrowed cooly, wintery frost all but washing over me in his gaze. "You dance along a dangerous apex, young man. A step to the left, a step to the right, a step forwards or back may have repercussions you are in no way capable of handling."

"What, your robots jumping me again? Dying? Big deal," I huffed haughtily. "I don't care about me! Just let everyone else go, you lying jerk! No one here means you any harm. Just because they don't want to see you drag yourself and everything onboard this ship into death's door doesn't make them something you can outright kill!"

He arched one fuzzy eyebrow at me, his wrinkled face twisting in disdain. "And so you still take those steps. You fling yourself from your summit and down through the point of no return. Sora, your rash actions will be your downfall."

Maxmilian's loud humming and turn towards a set of monitors on Dr. Reinhardt's control console cut off my snappy reply. The man turned his focus away from me and instead onto the focus of his demonic creation's attention.

As his brow furrowed harshly, he snorted. "Tell the sentry robots to fire on any humanoids between medical and the _Palomino._"

"What the heck!" I bit. "Now you're killing off the remains of your crew? What about all that kindness and compassion you tried to convince us you have? You're no better than the damned Heartless!"

Turning slowly towards me, his back facing the huge black hole beyond the front window of the _Cygnus'_ bridge, he glowered at me. "Silence, child. This is no concern of yours."

The ship rumbled loudly.

I swallowed, my action harsh and painful as I still stood nearly suspended between my sentry robot guards.

We were heading into the black hole.

"You're mad," I softly whispered, terror turning my legs to jelly as I watched the long ship's progress towards our inevitable death.

Reinhardt ignored me. Instead he occupied his attention with what was occurring on his security screens.

Moments later he turned to Maximilian, his eyes verily on fire as he snapped, "Your crack unit, outwitted and outfought by some Earth robot and that antique from storage." Slapping his forehead solidly, he meandered away from his huge beast and approached instead one of his humanoids.

As I strained to listen, I almost squeaked when I heard what he'd relayed - "We cannot endanger the _Cygnus_ by exploding them too soon."

He turned sharply, his eyes verily glowing in the array of lights that flooded the bridge, those pupils he sported as dark as the black hole we were flying towards. "Give them distance, then blow them out of the sky."

"No!" I screamed, my vigor returned and my fight renewed against my captors.

Flinging my right arm forward as sharply as I could, I lashed out with my foot at the same moment and managed to catch the robot that held the arm bearing Ultima Weapon off balance. As it clattered noisily away from me, I turned and walloped the other robot that clung to me solidly with my Keyblade.

"Blow it apart before it hits us! Fire!" I heard.

I turned on my heel, lunging for the humanoid that moved with unbreakable resolve for the controls before it.

I was far too late - the moment I grasped a stiff, chilly shoulder and wrenched the robed humanoid back and out of its chair, rockets were already colliding with the _Palomino_. Even as I turned towards the window, I felt tears stream out of my eyes; the small ship was blown to pieces, chunks of metal skipping along the _Cygnus_' twisted structure.

Even as the largest of the pieces remaining of the _Palomino_ crashed solidly into the _Cygnus_, alarms blared to life and red lights flashed brilliantly across the bridge. I turned sharply on my toes. "Stop the ship! Now!" I cried at the top of my voice.

I felt my heels hit the ground even as I swiftly backpedaled away from Maximilian - the huge robot had decided to approach me, its bladed arms rising at its sides. I hefted Ultima Weapon before me, narrowing my eyes and grimacing hatefully. "Bring it on," I hissed.

The ship shook violently.

As I lost my footing and fell square on my butt, my head colliding sharply with the metal deck I was standing on, I watched stars dance over my eyeballs and huge red-hot asteroids race past the bridge.

What the...?

Maximilian steadily floated towards me even as I bolted to my feet and dashed away from it, leaving my Keyblade lying on the ground. Only a moment passed before I was turned to face the robot again, my left hand loosely set upon the back of an empty chair and my right recalling Ultima Weapon to me. The blade vanished from the floor and swiftly reformed in my hand where it belonged.

Another sharp quake rocked the _Cygnus_.

I turned, staring at the monitor beside me. "No way!" I cried.

A huge asteroid was rolling through whatever segment of the ship the monitor I was beside was monitoring. And before my eyes, three figures - Kate, Dan and Charlie judging by their builds - were bolting back to their feet and dashing across a suspended bridge that spanned that segment of decimated vessel.

They were alive! But it didn't look like Harry was with them...

Certainly did resolve the mystery of who had died in the _Palomino._

I turned my head, swallowing as I noted Maximilian's proximity to myself. However, the robot's attention seemed to be focused on the monitor I'd been watching.

I lunged away from the robot even as the ship buckled, its twisting and harsh groaning marking the successful strike of yet another asteroid. I stared with horror flooding my body as a piece of the _Cygnus_ drifted by outside of the bridge's massive windows.

Without another thought, I lunged towards the wily Doctor seated in his chair even as another asteroid hit the _Cygnus_ and almost knocked me clean off my feet. "Holy crap! We're going to die if we keep this up. Dr. Reinhardt, this ship still has power, right? We've got to get away now! The _Cygnus_ can't go through the black hole if it can't even survive the storm!"

Another crash, another bang. My knees struck the deck, my hand with Ultima Weapon smashed into Hans Reinhardt's control console and my knuckles bruised even as I cried out. One of the catwalks overhead buckled and warped, dumping its humanoid occupants over suddenly snapped railing and to their final deaths as their skulls struck the hard resistance of the ground.

His eyes were frozen as he glared at me. His next words were a barked order to his humanoids. "Increase power to maximum. We are going through."

As the reactors hummed and the reverberation of the engines powering fully up roared through the ship, I cried out and clung to that console I'd collapsed by for dear life.

Oh please, Donald. Goofy! Lift off now!

The ship rumbled violently as its engines pushed it with terrifying speed towards the giant black hole. Struggling to my feet, I lunged with my left hand for Dr. Reinhardt's sleeve.

I grabbed his arm, my eyes huge and my brows furrowed. "Come on! Turn us around! We can't survive this!"

"Unhand me," he hissed at me, prying my fingers from his arm. "You should be honored, boy of another world. You, as I, shall be the first representative from your planet to witness the mind of God! We shall be the first to attain eternity, the first to experience the perfection of that dimension awaiting discovery beyond the portal before us. And still, you hold such fear."

"Look, the _Cygnus_ is damaged to the point of being destroyed. The _Palomino's_ been shot down. There's no way we can make it through!"

He laughed at my proclamation.

I backed away, my feet barely maintaining their purchase on the hard metal deck as the ship shook direly.

The metal around me groaned.

A sudden calm washed over me as I stood upon that bridge, my eyes flooded with the sight of glass and twisted metal and light being sucked into the giant black hole before me. Ultima Weapon faded from my hand, the Keyblade returning to the depths of my heart from where it had originated.

I was going to die.

Closing my eyes, washing myself in the serenity of darkness, I let a sigh escape my lungs and leak from between my lips.

All I could hope was that, with the _Cygnus_ falling into such disrepair, Donald and Goofy would take the opportunity to escape into hyperspace. After all, with the beating the _Cygnus_ had taken from asteroids and from the volatile forces being put on its abused structure by the black hole itself, I doubted that Dr. Reinhardt's humanoid forces had the ability to blow the _Excalibur_ out of the sky like they had the _Palomino._

I couldn't bring myself to panic as the bridge surged violently around me, the deck underneath me warping and bulging. I staggered a few steps, catching myself with what little agility I had, letting my lashes part and my eyes take in my doom.

Monitors all about the bridge were flashing the same warning in huge red letters, spelling our fate out for us; 'STRUCTURAL DAMAGE OVERLOAD' blared around every inhabitant of the _Cygnus'_ control room. I felt relief wash over me for the first time since my initial progression from the _Excalibur's_ interior and my shoes' tamping onto the _Cygnus' _metal deck plates - at least the humanoids weren't in possession of their minds and hearts anymore. They couldn't know what was going to happen to them all.

Behind me, the reactor detrimentally failed. Hot flame raced through the bridge along with a deafening explosion. Humanoids were flung errantly about, toppling out of chairs and sent reeling across the room as control consoles blew themselves up and arching lightning bolts of electricity poured from computers around the room.

Even as beams of metal blasted loose by the asteroids' strikes, the explosion of the reactor or perhaps the volatile deaths of the computers around me swung down and crashed throughout the bridge, I stood and stared blankly at the black hole before us all. The window between me and space made a terrible crunching sound, spider webs of cracks bursting into being and racing faster than the eye could see across its huge span.

The largest monitor on the bridge swung freely overhead even as Dr. Reinhardt rose from his chair and began to slowly walk towards the elevator, his arm lightly brushing my shoulder as he progressed right past me.

Turning his head, he growled to his huge robot to draw its attention away from the monitors it was observing. "Maximilian! Prepare the probe ship."

I numbly stood in place as Maximilian floated to its creator then turned away and approached the elevator, making to leave and carry out Hans Reinhardt's order.

A crash echoed through the control room. I turned and stared at the source of the sound.

The huge monitor that had been swinging dangerously overhead had finally broken loose.

Hans Reinhardt screamed underneath it, his thin hands curled along its upper edge and trying desperately to push it away.

"Maximilian! Help me! Help me," he gasped desperately before his eyes roved to his humanoid crew as they worked their computer consoles.

The bronzed robot ignored him, leaving the bridge to carry out his order to ready the probe ship instead. The humanoids at their consoles continued their work, aimlessly touching buttons and typing commands into their computer stations.

"Fools! Listen to me! Listen to me! Help! Help. Listen, somebody. Help."

As he wheezed for aid, I took an unsteady step towards him.

"Dr. Reinhardt," I quietly breathed. A few moments later, I lay my hands near his.

There was no reason for him to die like this. Even though he had condemned us all to death, I couldn't bring myself to abandon him in his time of need. I wouldn't stoop to the same level of inhumanity that the mad Doctor had in his final moments.

"Come on. Push!" I ordered even as I strained against that huge monitor, pulling with every ounce of strength that I had and planting my sneakers solidly on the floor. "Come on!"

His eyes blinked slowly, his lips parting and blood bubbling between them. "The light..." he softly whispered.

"Come on!" I screamed, crying loudly in frustration as I yanked with all of my might.

"Sora!" a gravely voice yelled.

A huge white glove clamped over my shoulder. "C'mon, Sora! We gotta go now!"

"Guys!" I breathed, astonished.

Donald ran to my side, his webbed feet slapping loudly on the metal floor. Leaning over as he came to a halt, he slowly shook his head. His blue eyes were huge and sad when he lifted them to meet my gaze. "You don't need to do that anymore, Sora."

"No," I whispered.

"Gawrsh, you tried your best. Now let get outta here. Otherwise we're really gonna go through that black hole!" Goofy stated.

I felt a lump move down my throat as I pulled my hands away from the monitor I'd been trying to save Hans Reinhardt from. As his blood congealed at the corners of his mouth, I felt revulsion wash over me.

If only I'd been more forceful... if only I'd acted more quickly...

My inability to act had murdered him.

I stumbled as Goofy pulled me along, forcing me to abandon the failed and decrepit _Cygnus._

Even as I was pushed into my seat and Donald's shaking hands swiftly buckled my belt, I numbly turned my gaze to the window.

Then I cried out, trying desperately to undo the restraints Donald had just fastened into place. "Guys! It's the _Palomino's _crew! We gotta help them!"

There they were, barely a launch pad away from us.

Apparently the damage to the _Cygnus_ was so great that every ounce of oxygenated air that it contained was being stripped and sucked across its exterior. In that bubble of breathable space were Charlie Pizer, Dan Holland, Kate McCrae and V.I.N.CENT, struggling desperately to climb into the probe ship that Dr. Reinhardt had used to explore the event horizon of the massive rift in space the _Cygnus_ was now doomed to drift into.

"They'll get in there, Sora," Goofy reassured me even as he forced me into the seat and buckled me back in. "That probe ship got away from the black hole before, remember? It can do it again!"

"Yeah! It's us we've got to be worried about," Donald bit sharply even as he let his white feathered fingers swiftly dance over the gummi's control.

I bit my lips as the gummi ship rumbled to life, its engines powering up as quickly as they were designed to. We lifted off from the crumbling _Cygnus_ even as the probe ship's burner flashed to life and pushed that vessel from its place.

A sigh rattled my lungs as I dragged my hand across my brow. "Thank goodness," I quietly breathed.

Donald's loud quack of distress rattled me out of my moment of comfort.

"Oh no!" Goofy cried out even as I turned and stared.

"What the heck are they doing?" I cried out. "No! Guys, come back! This way!" I screamed, freeing myself from my chair and plastering my hands onto the gummi's windows. "COME BACK!"

Donald's voice was quiet and dismayed as he whispered, "That was Reinhardt's probe ship. It would've had his desired path programmed into it."

"You mean..." Goofy began, his eyes huge and watery.

"Yeah. They're going into the black hole."

I screamed as their ship plunged beyond the event horizon, vanishing into that whirling doorway to death.

_-to be continued-_

Hey, no complaining about the 'oxygenated space' thing. That's from the damned movie. And no griping about the end - 'The Black Hole' was _not_ a friendly Disney film. I was a devastated little kid when I figured out what all those final scenes really meant.

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Review replies: 

Iaveina: Heh heh. Yeah, everyone could use a hug. I'm glad the last chapter provoked that kind of response. Thank you so much for reviewing! I did indeed have a nice Christmas and a great New Year - hope you did as well!

Raz: I hear you about being lazy about logging in. Me too. Heh. And yeah, I kind of had to force myself to come to the realization that he wouldn't be speaking anymore 'round chapter 43. I whined fitfully, but resigned myself to the inevitable - he'll get his break someday, but that day will likely be at the end of the story itself. I have to agree that he'd have made a grand Keyblade Master - even with the darkness-embracing, lust-for-power stuff that could happen to anyone... he could've been that kind of Keyblade Master to bring destruction rather than salvation. (cackles) And as for where they're headed next, no big worries... they only have a couple chapters in a world that was featured in both KH1 and KH2, then a swing through the remains of a FF world (broke convention, but it's the FF guys. 'least I'm not sending Sora's gang there), and finally a jump through a rather chipper Disney movie. Nah, it's the Sora group that's going to Hell in a handbasket. (cackle) And no Old Yeller, no matter how tempting it was. Sora's getting an animated classic and a partially animated masterpiece. (evil li'l grin) So no need to worry 'bout getting that inflatable raft! I'm so happy you're still liking this fic! And I certainly hope you liked this chapter. The end of 'Black Hole' always made me stare in disbelief - as a little girl, I cried fitfully. Sheesh, I was such a goober... (sheepish grin)

Hikari of the Moon: Yeah, I kind of noticed that the alerts are malfunctioning as well. (frowns) I was convinced no one reviewed for chapter 48 until I checked ff. net itself. Weird, huh? Anyway, our poor li'l Heartless being back to 'normal' does indeed open the path for more Cleon development now that they've got an opportunity to return to being in their right minds. We'll see how it goes between those two. (snicker) And Sora... I can't wait for what he's going to go through. I actually had to actively hunt for the movie he's going through next - kudos to my best buddy Ava for finding it on DVD after all these years! (parades around) Though it might be painful - the hero in that damned movie was a giant wanker. Rather like Sora, but worse. Thanks for submitting!

Kitty Kyinsky: Yep, sad fact of our resident Heartless' little pathetic life. Poor guy. I'm certain that if he had enough mental capacity to remember how to write he'd happily do so! We need Heartless school systems. Unless they're like the Southern California public education system - that place makes geniuses like myself, so he'd just end up worse than he already is there. (cackle) Thanks for the review... and stop poking the Heartless! Poke a plushie instead. (smirk)

terracannon876: Well, couldn't help the short length of the chapter - Heartless chapters actually do have an obnoxiously short page limit on them that was only broken thanks to Wonderland giving our resident Shadow a taste of his mind. Oh well. Yeah, you were right - that was indeed a Sora chapter! Don't worry, though - we're getting back to the others ASAP. Hope you liked this chapter, though!

scarlettHuntress: Heh heh heh. Sexy bishonen... (meanders off to drool in a corner) Ah hem. Anyway. Yeah, gotta pitty the Heartless. But there are plans in motion for him, oh yes! No worries. Thanks for reviewing!

Li the Twilight Knight: First off, I got slammed by both PM reviews on the same day. Eh heh. So to reply first to the Christmas one! Yeah, the wrap-up from Cid's POV was rather chaotic, wasn't it? But it was helluva lot of fun! Neh heh heh. WTF is pretty right, though. (giggles) And now for the New Years review! Lemme see... what was I doing at that time... oh! I was drinking in Southern California on vacation. Yee ha! Now stuck back in Virginia, back at work and everything. (sob) Oh well. Anyway, to reply to the review, yeah, it's mean for our Heartless buddy to lose the ability to speak. But hey! He's got more development to come, so no big worries. And thank you soooo much (deadpan). Now I've been singing the whole Mickey Mouse Club song while typing this reply. Sheesh! Yeah, it's old, but it's awesome and awesomely catchy! I heart it. Thanks so much for the PM review!

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(dances around like an inebriated fool) Done with yet another Disney movie! And now on to the next one... (blows dust off the volume and cackles madly, accompanied by the Ansem plushie before yelling in unison with the demonic thing "SUBMIT!") 


	50. Acknowledgement

Sorry for the almost cliché quality of this chapter, and for the excessive cheese. I need to finish off with an intended explanation for a difference between KH1 and KH2 hence the arrival in this movie, and get all this errant stupid humor out of my system in preparation for where they're going next. Maybe it's something in my black, withered little heart crying out for an ounce of random happiness before I go plunging back into angst after the mind-fuck that was Wonderland. And the bit at the end wouldn't leave me alone until I typed it. Blame the caffeine! Mm. Diet Coke! Yummy.

FYI, there's also an optional chapter. I'll warn you right now – it's not the Cleon you're looking for, even though Leon's the POV. That'll be later. However, if you still want to view this thing even given my warning, just remove the spaces after each dot and slash and check it. It takes place before this chapter commences. I love dream sequences. (cackle)

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ bcd50-5. html

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or Hercules. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 50  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Acknowledgement

My eyelids felt heavy as I pried them apart.

I was stiff, soar, and suffering from what had to be the most hellacious headache I'd ever experienced in my entire life, including those five years I'd been sucking air through a tube and bobbling in my very own tube of green Mako-flooded fluids. To boot, I was tethered in a rather uncomfortable position to a soft chair with ropes twisted into convoluted knots that showed no promise of giving way. The world was a blur of darkness punctuated by green and red and white dots that fuzzily danced before my pupils. My wing was battered and torn and pressing sharply into my back – gritting my teeth, I willed it away, wincing as magic flowed through my veins and tucked it back into the aura of darkness that encased me.

My eyes slid shut again as I groaned quietly, trying desperately to ignore the fact that my arm was asleep and my leg felt as if it were twisted entirely in the wrong direction. I couldn't feel my toes at all and my neck had a horrible crick in it that couldn't be popped from my captive state.

"Where am I…?" I softly groaned in my self-imposed dark environment, addressing whoever might be beyond my eyelids.

A scuffling, a thump, a rustle of cloth were the noises that struck my ears. Ah hah. There were indeed other persons around.

"Cloud! Your finally awake, eh?" Cid's rough voice snarled.

Ah, Cid! That meant… at least I'd not been taken captive by anyone.

But then again, I was tethered to a chair….

"Neh, what happened?" I quietly began, willing my eyes to open again. They slowly blinked, bringing the world one eyelash-flooded flicker at a time back into crisp focus despite the pounding in my skull.

I was onboard the gummi, bound to my usual chair with every line of rope that we'd packed. My clothes were tattered and blood-splattered, covered in soot and grime and stained with sweat.

The Heartless was looking curiously at me, big yellow eyes staring.

Yellow?

Oh crap….

"Get back here, you Shadowy bit. Sit your ass in yer chair!" Cid ordered. The Heartless looked blankly at him, apparently once again unable to comprehend simple statements. It took Cid patting the empty chair that the Heartless had apparently abandoned to get the little guy to move and reclaim his seat.

"Anyway, your really with us, Cloud?" Cid asked, his blue eyes a bit wide with concern even as he chewed on the remains of a burnt-out cigarette.

"Mmph," I grunted, trying desperately to move at least a bit. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be…?"

"Just kinda had to wonder, considerin' the fucked-up state you were in when I had to drag your stupid ass into the gummi."

Fucked up state…?

Suddenly it washed over me.

Leon's hands on my body.

Leon's lips on my own.

Leon's eyes glowing, silver replaced by opalescence.

Sephiroth's voice professing that I would attain immortality. That I would become power incarnate. That I could touch a god, if only I would become of him.

No, but that wasn't Sephiroth… that was Leon, too….

And something within me had snapped at that. That sliver of darkness that pierces my heart, binding me to mediocrity within shadow just as firmly as the leather wing upon my back binds me to my contract with Hades. My contract to have delivered unto me the One-Winged Angel in exchange for the life of a would-be god.

I tried to struggle a little in my bonds, attempting to at least sit upright.

The Heartless was out of his chair in a second, his sharp claws making short work of the ropes and their knots as he set me free.

"Thanks," I automatically replied, disappointment and sorrow flooding my heart as he looked upon me with big, empty yellow eyes before hopping back into his seat when Cid bellowed at him.

He couldn't understand us anymore….

The person trapped within that Shadow's form that had so helped us through the terrors of Wonderland was gone once more.

Sitting up properly, I groaned and held my head. "Cid," I faintly began, "what became of Leon?"

Cid's teeth ground together audibly, mashing the filter of his spent cigarette beyond repair. As the remains of that stick fell from his mouth, he huffed and spat the cottony remnants of it from his mouth. "He's here," Cid began. "Been in the engine room of the gummi since we left."

"Since we left…?"

"We've been in space for five days now," Cid stated blandly. "We've been force feedin' your skinny ass Soup in Hand to keep you alive. Don't know how Leon's livin'. Dumb ass won't speak to me. Refuses to come out of the corner he got himself wedged into. Heartless here went to go try an' bring him some crackers, but he shoed him off."

I scowled. That didn't sound like Leon….

"See, thing is that he remembers what happened," the gummi's pilot softly stated.

My eyes widened.

The soft proclamations… the meteor barreling from the sky… the devouring of the Jabberwock's Heartless… the moves he'd made in my direction….

He remembered it all…?

Even to my mind, only a few things were clear. Everything was hazy, drawn, faded, dreamy. Wonderland, for the most part, was glazed in a fog of disbelief that made it completely unreal in my mind.

If everything I recalled was truly reality, that and whatever it was that filled the spaces between my scattered recollections….

No wonder he'd isolated himself.

"I'll deal with him," I interjected, rising from my seat and stumbling on unused legs towards the engine room's hatch. Setting a thin hand on the heavy portal I eased it open and shoved my head through.

"Go away," a soft voice whimpered somberly from the shadowy depths of the unmanned space.

"Leon?" I began, my voice as kind and accepting and comforting as I could make it.

"Leave me alone."

"Come on. Won't you come out and be with the-"

"Go away," he interrupted, his voice hitching on a repressed sob. The lump that I could identify as him curled a bit more tightly in upon itself. Thin arms seemed to grip folded legs even more desperately. A bowed head pressed its face into those arms, hair effectively covering whatever expression I would have otherwise been able to garner.

With a sigh, I complied with his wishes.

Even as I turned on my heel to approach my chair again, my eyes widened and threatened to spring from my skull. "The hell!" I blurted.

"What's your problem now, Spiky?" Cid bit, glaring at me over his shoulder.

"Please, please tell me we're not landing there," I all but whined.

"Yep, we are!" he professed even as he barreled the gummi right into the ground next to the huge, looming gates. "Got a fuckin' problem with it?"

I groaned in dismay even as the hold I usually maintain over the physical evidence of my contract that bound my soul was overrun with the power of this world's inhabitants and my wing burst into reality. "Yeah."

"What the hell, Cloud?"

"Let's just say that… well, remember when you picked me up?"

"Oh yeah!" Cid professed, slapping his fist into the palm of his other hand even as he rose from his own seat and stomped back to the pile of clean laundry on the floor near me. "This was the place, wasn't it? Which means that you know your way around this fuckin' dump! And you already know some of the natives! And-"

"I'm under contract with the God of the Underworld to kill someone. And until I complete that contract, I'll be required to stay here and partake in their damned tournaments," I finished.

"For fuck's sake, Cloud! Why the damned hell do you have to make things so fucking difficult all the time?" Cid snapped.

"Shut up," I simpered as I yanked the remains of my clothing that I'd been unable to grab before our arduous trip into Wonderland onto my body, reclaimed First Tsurugi and its scabbard and grabbed a good helping of materia from our storage chest. "I'll get going. I've got things to do."

"Well, I'm gonna see 'bout findin' us a few parts for the gummi. You make sure you wrap this shit up quick as shit so we can blast off! Don't you think for a flamin' second that I'm gonna leave your sorry ass here; I'd never hear the end of it from Aerith if I did," Cid groused.

"Yeah, sure," I sighed even as I walked off the gummi, my cape fluttering behind me in an ethereal breeze.

Needless to say, things were what I'd expected them to be.

I stomped past the decorative gate that marked the border of the world, ignoring the deep voice that uttered, "Long ago, in the far away land of ancient Greece there was a golden age of powerful gods, extraordinary heroes…"

"And greatest and strongest of all these Heroes was the mighty Hercules," I grumpily breathed. "I know, I know. The same damned song and dance number is done every time some new unfortunate steps onto this rotten rock. Shut up already."

As I stomped right through the gates without pausing to listen to the rest of the narrative that always proclaimed Hercules' greatness, I sighed and let my shoulders slump.

"You can stop following me in darkness. I know you're there," I muttered.

I could only huff at the overly dramatized entrance of the person who'd been following me. Yeah, big ass shadow falling over me. Yeah, blue fire. Yeah, an enormous blue-skinned hand on my shoulder and a giant sharp-toothed grin right beside my face. Thank you so much for invading my privacy bubble.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite overcompensating sword slinger! Spike, it's been forever babe!"

"Sure, Hades," I huffed.

"And your return is so very prompt, too," he rambled on, his free hand waving in the air at his side as he all but forcibly shoved me along towards the huge wooden doors that marked the proper entrance to the Coliseum. "Got your ticket, my happy chocobo-headed champion. A new tournament is scheduled to open this afternoon, its top seed being that aggravating little perfect sunspot Hercules."

I casually leaned away from the huge blast of red fire that burst from the fast-talking God's head and shoulders. With a grunt I snatched the ticket from his clenched fist and ducked out of his overly tight grasp, the loose fabric of my cloak giving me some chance to maneuver.

As Hades slowly swiped his emptied hand over his head and breathed a calming sigh, the fire that made up his hair fading back to blue as he did so, he smirked at me. "Hop to, Spike. You've got a job to do. Get rid of Hercules, and we'll see what we can do about your special delivery."

I stopped my walk towards those doors, looking at the ticket in my hand.

Was seeing him really that important anymore…?

Yes, I wanted to be rid of my darkness, but….

Was seeing him again really worth the potential price?

Did I really want this to happen here and now, especially with my friends and….

With Leon here?

"You know, forget it," I breathed as I turned back to face Hades and held the ticket out to him. "I don't care about finding him anymore. I can live my life without facing my darkness – I just have to accept it, and accept the fact that others are still willing to accept me despite that taint. My heart doesn't belong so exclusively to darkness anymore that I feel I must seek it out and face it. That detrimental focus has been repaired by another. I don't need this."

Hot orange flame washed over me as Hades veritably burst. "WHAT! You impertinent little mongrel! You think you can bow out just because you changed your mind? You forget – I OWN YOU!"

He stormed towards me more quickly than I could possibly flee – his clawed right hand quickly snagged its talons into my ripped wing. I couldn't help but cry out in pain as he tore through already wounded flesh and the fire that blazed atop his head and over his shoulders leaked down his arms to brush against my skin.

"So, my little sucker, thinking of backing out? You don't have that option! Remember your contract? As long as there're tournaments you can get into, you're in! You go until you can take him down in front of the public eye, on your darkness-stained little soul! You think you have a choice in the matter? Your choices were nullified when you shook!"

Tears welled in my eyes as I sagged before him, pain washing over my senses just as thoroughly as my own frustration at my ineptitude and my rash decisions made so long ago that had condemned me.

"So," he snarled before letting his mouth sag open, a puff of breath bursting from between his sharp teeth and his continence turning blue once more, "get in there and fight. I expect to see Hercules dead by the end of this, Spike."

I groaned, my head sagging as Hades burst into a cloud of heat and black smoke, vanishing from the Coliseum's open-aired atrium.

Finding the satyr Phil didn't put me into any better of mood – first, he wasn't overly happy to see me. My ticket was all that granted me entry into his tournament; my entry was only guaranteed after I assured the stubborn little goat that Leon wouldn't be entering as well.

Seemed the bow-legged little fuzz ball was still bitter about being kicked by the gunblader across his lobby when said gunblader was escorting me to the tubs to make certain I was alright after facing off with Cerberus during the Hades Cup tournament. Time's passage certainly didn't make his opinion of Leon raise any.

Out of options and out of things to do until the tournament was scheduled to start, I glowered at the gates, noted the starting time and stormed out of a side passage I used to frequent during my extended stay in the Grecian hellhole I frequented. Passing right past the doorways that lead to the expansive network of baths and hot tubs, I continued on towards my intended destination. It wasn't long until I came across the other place I used to meander to in order to escape and relax – the gardens.

With a hearty exhalation, I flopped myself down onto a hard stone bench and shook my head. Mako eyes hard, I glowered coolly at the gently lapping pool that segregated the small section of park I was seated in from the small, almost hidden side doors that lead to the interior of the mighty Coliseum. "You know," I softly murmured, softly to the trees and the flowers that would dare listen to my lame lamentations, "if there's a prize for rotten judgment, I guess I've already won that."

My hands twisted their fingers together as I calmly seethed internally, my mind blurrily recalling what I'd been witness to during our journey to this hateful place. Leon's avoidance of me, Leon's order that I leave him alone… Leon's remarks to me when his eyes glowed unnaturally within their sockets… Leon's odd behavior in Wonderland and his brash forward motions without regard for my opinions, my longings or my comfort. It was annoying. It was frustrating. It was pissing me the hell off. Focusing back on that pool, I huffed with irritation staining my breath. "No man is worth the aggravation." Go back to Leon? Beg to know what was going on in his twisted, turmoil-rattled brain? Just for the hope of recovering a relationship that….

A relationship that had always been friendship, no matter how long I had been secretly wishing for it to be something deeper, something more fulfilling?

"That's ancient history," I sighed softly. "Been there, done that."

I quirked a brow, glancing around as a series of female voices that sounded oddly like those damned muses that always sing the praises of Hercules at the gates to the world burst around me, loudly and musically proclaiming, "Who'd'ya think you're kiddin'? He's the Earth and Heaven to you! Try to keep it hidden; Honey, we can see right through you."

I bolted off of my bench, looking wildly around the garden park I was in. Where the hell were those wenches?

Their voices continued to taunt me, happily singing, "Boy, ya can't conceal it. We know how ya feel and who you're thinking of!"

My fists balled at my sides as I swiftly replied, "No chance, no way! I won't say it, no no!"

They replied, "You swoon, you sigh! Why deny it, uh-oh!"

"It's too cliché," I huffed. "I won't say I'm in love."

Turning sharply on my heels, I stomped my way around the garden, trying desperately to ignore the stony gazes of the statues around me and the sensation of muses peering at me from their hiding places. My lips twisting into a snarl, I ground out my explanation, the need to justify my oddly surfacing longings that I'd kept repressed for so long to myself overwhelming. "I thought my heart had learned its lesson. It feels so good when you start out," I sighed.

It did. When I first set my eyes upon him, secretly admiring the sheer strength and poise he naturally flaunted, when I first felt the touch of that cool personality with the carefully guarded concern laying under a layer of protective frost, when I first discovered the soft and sadness-enshrouded heart that he hides behind a wall of ice so strong it can be likened to steel I'd been infatuated. Enthralled, even. I'd been captivated, despite my many attempts to reassure myself that all I felt for the man was appreciation for his strength as a fellow warrior in the battle against the Heartless and my attempts to regulate myself to mere friendship with him.

My heart, regardless of my brain's attempts to keep my opinions of him solely platonic, always fluttered madly ever since that moment we'd first met in the Coliseum's lobby. But my heart, as was shown in Wonderland, would lead me to hurt and pain, down paths I'd already traveled as shown by that summoned clone of Sephiroth. My mind had the correct path. My mouth moved of its own accord, as if verbal reiteration of my thoughts would make them seem that much more correct and real. "My head is screaming 'get a grip, boy,' unless you're dying to cry your heart out." My breath leaked away in a sigh of "Oh…."

From their hiding places, the muses' chipper voices burst into song again. "You keep on denying who you are and how you're feeling. Baby, we're not buying! Hon, we saw ya hit the ceiling; face it like a grown-up. When ya gonna own up that ya got, got, got it bad!"

I snarled, "No chance, no way! I won't say it, no no!"

"Give up, give in! Check the grin! You're in love," they retaliated.

"This scene won't play! I won't say I'm in love."

"You're doin' flips! Read our lips; you're in love," the muses sang brightly.

I grit my teeth tightly, seething madly, my face so flushed with frustration that I was certain steam was roiling off of my head. "You're way off base. I won't say it! Get off my case! I won't say it."

Their voices were merry as they called from wherever it was they were stashed, "Boy, don't be proud. It's okay, you're in love."

I sighed softly, turning back towards the doors to the Coliseum.

Did I really feel…?

I let a soft, slight smile leak over my lips as I hung my head, my bangs shading my Mako eyes from the world.

Life did seem awfully empty without him around.

Maybe…

"Oh, at least out loud, I won't say I'm in love," I softly mumbled.

Applause filled the air, light clapping of a single pair of hands ringing detrimentally loud. I cringed, my cheeks flushed now not in frustration but in sheer embarrassment.

"Beautiful, Spiky. But you know, there's no love for song-stealing Prima Donnas. Why don't'cha move it, buster? I could swear you've got a butt kicking waiting for you from Wonder Boy. Go forth and wave around your big chunk of metallic compensation, little man."

My face burning furiously, I glowered at the thin brunette who'd walked unnoticed into the garden I inhabited.

"Go on, fluff-brain. This is _my_ number. Or do I have to spell it out for ya? Maybe spill your little secret to the one you're singing my song for?"

A grunt passed from my throat. "I've got to get to that lobby. That damned satyr had better have the tournament opened when I get there – I have a contract to uphold."

As I stormed away, my wing spread to my side, my cape fluttering dramatically behind me and the golden claws of the glove on my left hand sparkling in the wan moonlight, the woman who'd walked in on me waved before flopping her skinny butt down on the bench I'd abandoned.

My eyes twitched as I heard her voice profess, "Alright girls. Let's get this song over with."

Even as the muses twittered and laughed, she ordered them, "Once again, from the top!"

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

hybrid2: Heh heh. Thanks for reviewing! Well, seeing as how my goal is to stay true to the movies that he goes in, Sora didn't have much of a choice but to go through what he experienced. But then again, I like traumatizing happy characters. ;) Your recount of your friend playing Alice made me laugh exuberantly! That game's so awesome. Yeah, everyone's going to have fun trying to heal from that mess. (smirk) Anyway, thanks for reviewing, and hope you liked this very… odd chapter!

Melodious Flurry: Cool, a plushie of the only party member in KH that has common sense! Let's hear it for Goofy! Anyway, thanks for the compliments. I'm glad that the last chapter was satisfactory. Yeah, I know where I'm actually going with this, so it's a little late for suggestions… however, I'm hoping that my choices for up and coming movies will please. I'm almost positive that they'll be well received, though. Hope you liked this chapter, and thanks for the review!

Raz: Thanks so much for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the Sora chapter (and your reminder of my favorite ride at Disneyland of all time, Space Mountain! Yippee!) – that was actually a terribly fun one to write, and gave me the opportunity to really play with his character. I prefer him being a little more mature… and one has to admit, he actually does magically mature between KH1 and KH:CoM – he goes from wanking about saving worlds to wanking about his missing best friend and making things right for once. Can only attribute it to the time between the two, neh? Mwa hah hah. BTW, absolutely _adore_ your take on the FF/Sora reunion. Hilarious! And as for what the 'remains of a FF world' will do… all in due time, my dear. All in due time. Thanks for the reminder of 'popcorn logic' – I guess I'm supremely anal about things like that… heck, I'm one of those people who blurted in the theatre when watching 'Apollo 13' "Hey! That's the modern NASA sign! And why does that Corvette have 90's California license plates on it?" Yep, smack me now. (sheepish grin) Leon/Cloud: … angst mental breakdown (falls over laughing) Thanks again, and hope you liked this chapter… even though it did delve considerably into cheese. (breaks open a bottle of Felsinger White Cabernet to enjoy with the latest installment of BCD)

Hikari of the Moon: Ah, awesomeness! I certainly hope that ff. net gets its blasted email alert system repaired one of these days. (snarl snort) Sheesh. Glad your friend got you to notice the update – many thanks along with a procession of kitty kisses are offered! (mashes her kitten's muzzle against her computer's abused monitor) Yeah, definitely not one of Disney's conventional moments, 'The Black Hole.' Cascading through imagery of Hell and the path to Heaven and the existence Beyond was rather mind blowing and terrifying to a little brat who was watching it on Wonderful World of Disney with her Mom and Dad. (grin) One of the few where the ending is… not the happiest of all time. Hence why it has a wacko cult following (proudly waves her hands in the air) and isn't a popular mainstream 'Disney Classic.' Oh, I'll relay to Ava that she has your gratitude. I think appreciation for her efforts and her Christmas gift to me will truly be felt once the film itself is actually mentioned - it's coming up soon enough! Anyway, your wish is my demand – new chapter posted, and hope you like it! Thanks so much for the review! The Ansem plushie would thank you too, if he weren't so busy reveling in the fact that he has a following submitting to him.

scarlettHuntress: Aw, only skimmed? You're going to be missing out on an awesome movie if you don't bother with the Sora stuff! (waves case tauntingly) Actually, I rather love the end of the last Sora chapter. All dark an' stuff. Well, anyway, here's an FF bit. Hope this met your expectations. Thanks for the review!

Li the Twilight Knight: So sorry to hear about your connection! Sucktastic, I say. Bleh. Thanks for the link - I've seen almost all of those before, but the bloopers they pointed out (Cloud's magically water repellant clothing, for example) were pretty darned funny. :) Knew about the Aerith stuff too - I was, like, 'what the heck is this crap? The bimbo's dead, and now I have to witness the ghost of Splato the Wonder Yutz?' Keh heh heh. I heart Aerith. Just like I heart work. They both make me a raving alcoholic.

* * *

(bounces around like a hyperactive gerbil) I hate this movie with a passion, but they used it and I need this reprieve. It's building up to another marvelous bonus chapter. Yippee!

Yes, I've had lots of wonderful, marvelous caffeinated beverage. YAY! (smushes the Ansem plushie against her chest, letting it barely wheeze out "SUBMIT!")


	51. Tournament

To reiterate, I love FF8. When a person really thinks about the concept of Garden, a person really questions whether or not the game designers actually thought about what kind of horror they'd dreamed up. It's actually rather dark and dismal when you read between the lines. (cackle) Oh, and for you KH-only people, the stuff about Leon's youth and teenage years are more or less from FF8 – it's either directly from the game itself, or can easily be construed from the thoughts he thinks during the game.

Went one page over the limit just because I wanted to get this wrapped up and couldn't bring myself to cull anything after I was finished. Sorry! Also, another quick apology – we're going out to sea once more, so this is the last update for at least the remainder of this week. Oh well.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or Hercules. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 51  
The SeeD Commander – Tournament

Sometimes I wonder why I bother opening my eyes anymore.

For so very long, my only restitution has been in sleep, in dreams. Only there have I been able to find happiness, to find relaxation, to find comfort and ultimately peace. The 'real world' is a cruel, horrible place where hope is demolished and fate is a wicked mistress whose sole desire is to force you to bend to her will or break you in the process thereof.

This journey we were on, something that started off so simply and without complications, was quickly contorting to that controlling force of 'fate' just as every other waking moment in my life had done.

When I was a child, fate took away everyone I loved and adored, placing me in a military institution when I was nothing more than a child – I'd held a weapon before I'd struck puberty, I'd been taught the eloquence of strategy and war before I was a proper teenager, I'd been honed into a killing machine who would follow orders regardless of their murderous consequences before I was an adult. Life and death, good and evil, right and wrong became meaningless by the time I was seventeen. Life was simply a transient stage from nonexistence to nonexistence; its revoking meant nothing, its termination no different whether that life belonged to a human, a monster, a plant, an animal. Good and evil were a joke – they were simply concepts flaunted by opposing sides to justify their own position on whatever ideology or issue was present for argument. Right and wrong were ethical qualities drummed into a person by the society they were raised in, making those definitions moot and pointless upon traversal into a differing sociological establishment. Everything that people pride themselves on having a clear definition of became questionable to me. Everything that people stand firm upon was drilled out of me, proven to be an unstable foundation upon which to rest one's boots. I was trained to be void of the concepts of good and evil, of prizing life, of caring about right or wrong. I was trained to have devotion only to the completion of the mission assigned to me by any means possible. My life was dedicated to studies, to swordplay, to strategy, to harnessing the bloodthirsty nature that rests under the moral blanket that covers most people. I threw myself into the task of becoming a killer because that's what Garden wanted of me. I was a child, I was abandoned, and I was afraid of being alone; deep within my heart I knew that if I did not follow Garden's dictates, I would be abandoned by it as well.

When I was a teenager, fate saddled me with more travesties than any human being should be forced to experience. I was forced into assuming command of my home, my Garden, only to watch it go to war and stare as my people died battling the trained soldiers of another Garden, SeeD cadets barely trained in how to properly wielding their weapons spilling their blood happily in the defense of their abode and school. I was seated at the heart of the beginning of the near destruction of a nation, unwittingly stationed on the Lunar Observation Station when Lunatic Pandora moved and the Lunar Cry commenced; I watched helplessly as the one who would allow the release of a horror locked for seventeen years upon the planet moved beyond my reach and beyond my aid, as the monsters that would raze the land and slaughter hapless people poured from the moon and roared while they swam through the tunnel that crossed through space to spill them onto the Estherian plains. I was forced into the responsibility of rescuing the world from the madness-dreamt plans of a sorceress from the future, casting myself into the roll of the single entity that would become the crux of a time loop so convoluted that it hurt my head to ponder it. I was splattered with the blood of Ultimecia, the world's greatest threat… or perhaps the world's greatest victim; the woman whose focus was to compress all of time to eradicate all existence save her own, bringing about her ultimate revenge against those who had tormented her and her sorceress brethren throughout all of times past.

When I was cresting that wave to ride into adulthood, fate stripped me of everything I had ever held dear. The darkness of people's hearts upon my home world drew the black abyss that rests beyond the doors to Kingdom Hearts, making way for the never ending sea of Heartless to pour into our already tremulous society. Fate demolished my Garden. Fate destroyed my friends. Fate killed Rinoa. Fate butchered my heart. Fate caused me to walk through blood-drenched hallways, past the bodies of people I'd trained with or been raised with or had taught or had lead on missions. Fate caused me to open the doors to the ballroom and stare at the mutilated remains of my closest companions and dearest childhood friends. Fate willed me to cradle Rinoa's still body in my arms, to feel her blood soaking into the sleeves of my jacket and into that coat's fur collar, to feel her hair touch my cheek when I'd pressed my face to her head to sob my apologies for not arriving in time to save her. Fate dragged me kicking and screaming from my fallen Garden in a confection-crafted ship piloted by a bitter older man who was taking the craft for its maiden test-flight and an overly hyperactive stow-away brat. Fate let me look through that ship's windows and watch as the last remains of Balamb Garden, its shining halo that always glistened and glowed with such intensity that it could be seen from Balamb City itself on even the most foggy or stormy of days despite the distance between town and military institute, was swallowed liquidly by pulsating waves of jet smoke.

When I reached adulthood properly fate finally seemed to have decided that it was done toying with my existence. Time's flow became stagnant and dull, repetition becoming a rut I could not escape from. Life in Traverse Town was the same day in and day out – awaken, fight Heartless, receive some thanks from the residency of the dismal town I sought to attempt to prevent from meeting the same fate as my last home, buy my daily necessities and retire for the night. I progressed through a lonely, dull time, abandoning the identity of the man who had lost everything and been a marionette for forces more powerful than himself and assuming the identity of the desolate stranger who would have so little impact on his surroundings that none would draw their focus to him. I remained on the sidelines when darkness spread its tendrils across the universe, my only assistance being to relay some information and a smidgeon of aid to the newfound hero of the worlds. I remained in the shadows during the freeing of a place I once frequented in my childhood, taking no part in the relinquishing of Hollow Bastion from the grip of the Heartless that plagued it and instead following in the young Keyblade Master's footsteps as he blazed a trail through its dark halls. I dedicated myself only to the restoration of that childhood vacation resort, preparing it for those who would return to live in its roadways and its houses, trying in some small way to lend the name Leon to something worthwhile so that his existence could at least be acknowledged in some minute way.

So static had my life become that I had no qualms about entering upon a new venture when the little Shadow Heartless had dragged me from the darkness I'd almost allowed to swallow my spirit, and in fact had readily leapt at the opportunity to go upon another journey. To find the Keyblade Master, to find the one the Shadow had been seeking, was in my mind a small quest that would in no way draw the wily attention of fate to my shoulders.

I had been so very wrong.

Wonderland had proven to be my undoing. Fate looked, fate saw me, fate laughed and reclaimed her toy.

And I had let her.

I didn't fight at all when the mind-numbing effects of Wonderland began to consume my brain. Rather, I relished the feeling.

It was freedom.

Freedom from the guilt that had been consuming my life, freedom from the constant wave of morals that gnawed on my consciousness. It was the peace that I felt in dreams, brought forward to my waking reality. It was the unadulterated joy of acting without worry of the consequences, of doing whatever I wished and not holding back for fear of any repercussions.

And in that freedom, I'd brought to light those most horrendous desires that lay underneath my barely maintained mask.

I'd hurt Cloud.

Not only had I ignored his panic and his cries for my ceasing and desisting my behavior, I had let anger drive me when he'd done so. I pushed him despite his qualms. I pressed him despite his fears.

I drove him away.

And in my own guilt over his obvious reaction to my insensitivity and uncaring actions against him, I'd sacrificed myself to a bloodthirsty Guardian Force, allowing myself to junction my soul to hers and giving her complete control over me.

Then, to make matters worse, I didn't bother attempting to hold her back.

I could still taste the blood of demonic imps upon my lips. I could still feel the grisly flesh of jabberspawn in my stomach. I could still sense the darkness of the Heartless forms of the Jabberwock and the Mad Hatter stirring in my veins. Worst of all, I could still feel the pain of the gashes left by the overly familiar sword that Cloud had held in his hands, the same sword that had pierced my chest in Hollow Bastion's subterranean levels I could still feel the weight of his glares, the heat of his snarled professions that he would destroy me, the lust Eden still had for his blood in my belly. I could still taste the flesh of his wing on my tongue.

She still roiled in the back of my skull, her screams of fury and frustration at being removed from her junction to me loud and resounding. She tore through my brain, her steel wings mangling the material of my mind as she moved. Her sharp teeth were held at bay only by the carefully maintained ministrations of the other presence in my psyche, the cold wintry frost of Shiva icily caressing my body through my nerves and ensuring me that she would assist me, that she would never abandon me, that she would be with me until I had breathed my last or until the world that was our home ceased to exist completely in any realm, darkness or light.

She never answered my questions as to why she wouldn't aid me in Wonderland, why she would aid Cloud when he needed protection from me. Her only reply had been a vague reassurance that she'd wanted to and a sad proclamation that in that black world Eden held more power than she had, enabling her to ignore the icy chains she normally had raveled around the monstrous Guardian Force's power.

I wouldn't expect his forgiveness for my unspeakable acts against him. I wouldn't wait for Cid's understanding of why I had treated everyone the way I had.

While they knew as well as I did that Wonderland had affected me quite harshly, I was the only one who knew that I had allowed my degradation to occur. I could have fought against it – I simply refused to do so.

Thus, I was keeping my distance from everyone.

The engine room was quiet, secluded, infrequently visited. I'd chosen a remote corner of the confectionary machinery room to hide in, shooing away everyone who would come for me. Even Cloud.

Especially Cloud.

After what I'd done, I didn't know that I'd wish for any contact with him.

Even though in my dreams the one I saw with regularity assured me that my previous actions in the world we'd just escaped from wouldn't have as detrimental of an effect as I suspected they would, I was….

I was scared.

My desires had driven me to committing unspeakable actions against him. I had tried to force myself on him. I had tried to murder him. I had tried to _devour_ him.

When we landed, I waited until both Cloud and Cid had abandoned the gummi ship before I bothered segregating myself from the corner I'd inhabited for nearly a week. First course of action? Get cleaned. I hastily shed what remnants of clothing still clung desperately to me and used the solitary shower onboard the tiny vessel Cid had constructed to wash the grime of my battles in Wonderland, the blood from my enemies and my own slowly healing wounds and the musk from our venture and my seclusion without bathing in the hot engine room for nearly a week down the drain. Next I hastily got dressed, finding myself thankful that I'd taken it upon myself a few years ago to buy multiple pairs of pants at the boutique I'd located those leather garments with their buckles and zippers in. I also happily discovered that my boots, while marred and stained from our little trek, were mostly undamaged. My belts, having been forgotten onboard the ship, were spared any wear and Griever was left thankfully intact. The only regrettable loss was that my jacket, the piece I'd bought in Traverse Town to accompany the pants I had bought when I'd grown right out of my old pair from my world, was demolished. The spare was one I was reluctant to wear – it was something left over from the life of Squall, an item I was unwilling to part with.

No matter; when I removed my jacket from the box I'd kept it stored in for so many years, a box I'd unwittingly grabbed and stowed onboard the gummi without much thought, I found that it hardly resembled the article of clothing I remembered it being.

Yes, it was still black leather. Yes, the fur around the collar was still thick and white with a soft dusting of gray underneath, hiding bloodstains whose locations only I knew, whose presences only I could still see.

But someone had chopped the sleeves off, transferred the Griever insignia and the wings I'd had embroidered in the back of my destroyed jacket as homage to Rinoa to it in carefully stitched patches. Probably the combined efforts of Yuffie and Aerith, knowing those two; they'd probably figured I'd miss the jacket that one-winged beast the black-robed man had summoned back at Hollow Bastion had shoved his sword through and attempted to make my old one as close of a reproduction of it as they were able to.

Damned interfering women.

By the time I'd finally slid from the interior of the gummi ship, my gunblade firmly strapped to my side, I nearly fell over the Shadow that was the reason for our departure from Hollow Bastion. I looked down at him, arching a brow.

He pointed off towards the gates to the giant Coliseum before he grabbed at my pants and began to shuffle towards them.

Oh… great.

This place.

With a hearty sigh, I slunk after the eager little Heartless.

It wasn't long before I'd been dragged to Cid's side. A quick clearing of my throat garnered his attention.

"Leon!" he gaped, shock evident on his features before he turned a queasy, shallow smile that wasn't reflected at all in his eyes to me. "Good to see you out and about, kiddo," he muttered before nodding.

Not even his customary slap on the shoulder. Just a nod. Yeah, I'd expected as much – after the terror I'd transformed into on Wonderland, I couldn't expect anyone to behave any differently towards me. Shoving my hands in my pockets, I let my gaze find the dusty ground before my boots and sighed quietly. "Yeah," I replied.

To my surprise, Cid didn't leave, bite out a vulgar statement or even reprimand me for sulking. Instead, I felt the weight of a gaze upon my head.

When I finally lifted my gaze, I found myself looking into surprisingly sad and concerned eyes that didn't fit the Cid I'd come to know over our time together at all. "You gonna be alright, Leon?"

I silently shrugged, returning my gaze to the ground.

"Shit," he quietly breathed, an utterance to himself rather than to me I figured. Clearing his throat, his voice a bit louder to indicate that he was indeed speaking to me, he said, "Well, Spiky's got some business to take care of here. Something about fucking around in tournaments or what not. I've been looking high and low for a replacement to that demolished warp gummi of ours, but I ain't had no luck. Way I figure, since Cloud's not gonna pick his stupid fucking self out of these tournaments until he's done what he thinks he needs to do, we could always just spend our time watchin' him make an ass out of himself."

"Whatever," I quietly replied.

At Cid's request (or rather direct order), the Heartless and I accompanied him to the stands to watch Cloud partake in Phil the satyr's newest tournaments dubbed 'The Labors of Hercules.' A long event, it was supposed to be thirteen seeds high with the would-be Hero as its top rung. And apparently, it wasn't taking place in the order the labors had originally been proposed – no, to keep those who thought they knew what was coming from talking to the boisterous Hercules shaken up, he swapped them all over the place.

First battle we watched was Cloud flailing like mad against a flame-belching bull. Not so much of a challenge – Cloud quickly disposed of the beast, a simple leap into the air with that black wing of his spread saw him in complete avoidance of the deadly fiery breath of the animal. A quick turn mid-air and a flap to rocket him down at blinding speed, and First Tsurugi was going straight through the monstrous bull's neck.

Though Cid romped his way down to congratulate the blond warrior on his victory, I retreated instead to the gummi ship in an attempt to avoid him.

Next up, a giant hydra. The rest of the audience 'ooh'ed and 'awe'ed, apparently believing this would be a challenge to the prospective competitors in the tournament – indeed, many of the young warriors I had never before seen that were participating met their ends here, one going so far as to be eaten and another to be stepped on instead of just being eliminated by sheer damage to their persons. Cloud once more showed his power and grace, severing head after head then swiftly utilizing one of those stones he called 'materia' – it was a green glowing orb encased on the bangle Cloud wore on his left arm, something Cid referred to as a 'Master Fire Materia.' Whatever it was, it was rather effective, encasing the creature in flames and dissolving it to ash in record time.

After that, he fought with a strange giant deer that seemed immune to most strikes. Only a pair of blows with First Tsurugi between the tendons and bones of the creature's two forelegs saw it fall.

Cloud then faced off with a monstrous seed level that saw nearly every other competitor in the tournaments driven away – a gathering known as the Stymphalian birds, creatures who shot brass feathers at their opponents then tried to feast on their flesh. Fortunate for Cloud, his wing granted him the power of flight and the ability to meet them in the air, so he was capable of meeting them face to face in their own environment and thusly take them entirely by surprise. Half of their numbers were down by the time they organized themselves and retaliated; the other half fell from the skies with the masterful use of a Master Lightning Materia, leaving Cloud victorious and only slightly marred from their attacks.

The battle that followed seemed to cause Cloud some problems – giant women known as Amazons were gathered against him, each one well-armored and wielding bronze swords and shields. I was on the edge of my seat, wincing at every blow that he received and cringing every time he was flung errantly about the arena by his foes. Still, perhaps by the fact that he had three of those materia loaded onto him and one of them happened to have the power to cure him, he barely pulled through.

Cid visited him after that fight to throw a hi-potion at his head. I returned to the gummi to maintain my distance.

The next day started off against a multi-headed dragon named Ladon, apparently some legendary guardian of apples. Lame as the concept might be, the beast itself was pretty impressive. However, with each head having independent thoughts and lacking the ability to spawn once severed from the beast like the hydra's, Cloud simply dodged like mad between them, getting one head to effectively chomp through the sinewy necks of the rest of itself before he set First Tsurugi to its own neck and finished the job.

A huge man with three heads and an accompanying dog with two heads were his next challenge. Cloud punched the dog's heads together, making its brains fly errantly across the arena. The man, while wailing over the loss of his precious puppy, was swiftly booted out of the arena by a quickly delivered kick to the ass.

Phil the satyr was livid about the swiftness of that fight's end. The audience, however, thought it was pretty hysterical. I was rather indifferent – that challenge was in no way up to par with Cloud's abilities.

Next up was a creature known as the Erymanthian Boar – it seemed fierce enough, being a giant creature with bristling fur and giant tusks jutting from its lower jaw, beady red eyes glowering at Cloud as he confidently walked into the arena. However, it was no match for Cloud's masterful fighting; he was far too fast for the beast, keeping easily one step away from its slashing tusks and infuriated charges, leaping with beautiful grace about it and utilizing that wing to hover right out of its reach. He didn't bother utilizing his materia, instead using his sword exclusively. A few overpowered strokes of that weapon was all it took to put the boar down.

The Mares of Diomedes, flesh-eating beasts that Phil had managed to wrangle from some desolate land he wouldn't name, actually gave the blond warrior a run for his money. He had to resort once more to his Master Fire Materia after his right arm had been solidly bitten by one of those damned horses – and the Heartless held tightly onto my belts to keep me from bolting out of my seat and rushing to his aid. I could only grit my teeth and watch as they chewed hungrily at him, tearing a few good chunks of his skin and flesh away before he was able to roast every last one of them.

That night, I was the one to silently deliver a hi-potion to Cloud, also taking the time to delve into my mind and draw upon the power that Shiva lent me. He looked at me questioningly when I'd rested my hands on his mangled arm and drew a Curaga from the depths of my mind to cast it on him – I responded to his look with silence, turning away and making my quick escape before he could find his voice.

I tried vainly to ignore his call for me to wait, fleeing swiftly to the desolate gummi ship I had made my hideaway.

My feet barely dragged me into the stands to watch Cloud in action the coming morning – the memory of his glowing blue eyes boring into me while I granted him a Curaga was almost unbearable, playing with my already heavy guilt concerning all that had occurred and the rather ominous feelings that my dreams had instilled in me as of late. It was only by the dedicated guidance of the Shadow and Cid's cursing calls that I found my way back to the very seats we'd inhabited the entire time and put my butt onto the stony bench.

"So, what's on the menu today?" Cid amiably began, slapping me heartily on my shoulder.

I cringed slightly – a few days were all it took for the pilot to put the escapades of the last world behind us? What an easygoing guy.

He growled at my silence, enticing me to answer.

A quiet sigh escaped my lips. "Something about a lion, according to Phil."

The satyr bounded to our sides, recognizing us as the only gathering who actually knew a contestant in his tournament now – every other challenger had been effectively eliminated by his 'killer' combination of monstrous opponents. "Hey, you guys are here to support that blond guy that looks like trouble, right? Well, you better wish him lots of luck!" he raucously chuckled with a smirk.

I couldn't help but actually lift my gaze from the toes of my boots to look upon the round face of the mythological beast in their stead. "Oh really?" I blandly stated.

"Heck yeah. There's a reason no one but Herc could make it through this tournament, and that lion is it!"

"Such confidence in a simple monster," I softly quipped. "He's wiped out all of your other beasts. Why would this one be any different?"

A chuckle shook his round belly. "Oh, just wait and see."

I waited.

And sure enough, I saw.

As Cloud strode into the arena, the ground around him crackled and rumbled. In front of him, glowing and brilliant, a small orb of light pulsed into being before plunging into the ground at his feet.

With a blinding flash, that tiny orb's entry place became a pillar of white light, purple sparkles flitting as it stretched towards the heavens. A creature, huge and ominous, crawled out of the very stone itself.

My mouth went dry as I stared at it.

"What the fuck is that thing?" Cid yelped, his eyes wide as mine were.

"Something one of those Heartless that used to come here dropped; figured it found this guy on another world. And hey! If no one's going to claim him, he can work my tournament, I say! Awesome beast, isn't it?"

It hovered without any visible effort before Cloud, its nearly seven meter tall frame so darkly purplish blue that it bordered on black and splayed with soft crimson stripes. Five huge red horns erupted from its lion-like head, twisting and curling reminiscent of the protrusions featured by Bahamut or Ifrit. Arms and legs hanging limp and lazy, deadly crimson claws dangling uselessly, huge near-black bat-like limbs with tattered white feathers spread between those dark fingers kept it aloft and bobbing slowly in the air. Huge red horns protruded to the monstrosity's sides, jutting solidly from its elbows. A silvery pendulum-shaped blade mirroring the templar cross featured on my own necklace that rested below the stylized lion's head tipped a long tail that lazily trailed behind the creature. Red eyes looked blandly upon Cloud, jaws filled with deadly teeth remained shut. A long white mane fluttered in an unfelt breeze, pouring over a strong back between idle wings, cascading under a feline chin to sprawl down a short neck and spill over a heavily muscled neck.

"Holy shit. I ain't never seen nothin' like that," Cid softly breathed.

"I have," I quietly whispered.

Oh by Hyne, had I ever.

And I knew one certain fact from my past experience with it….

Cloud didn't stand a chance.

_-to be continued-_

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Sorry that I didn't include the 5th labor, but there's no way I could really incorporate the one where Hercules diverted rivers through Augeas' stable yards to clear away years worth of cow poop into the tournament. 

Also, apologies that the tournament was so rushed. However, let's consider this – it's Squall sitting in the stands staring blandly at someone else fighting and moping to himself about how much he sucks. Not much of a setting for writing glorious action scenes, neh? (the Ansem plushie taps his foot, glowering at the authoress until she cringes) Alright. Truthfully, I was toeing the edge of my page limit and just wanted to wrap this damned thing up so I could move on to the next chapter – I was hurrying to (a) get this out before I went underway, and (b) get this over with so I could get on to a scene I really want to write.

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Review replies: 

kadoosh: Thank you so very much for your review! Especially a first one. :) It was rather fun to type that last chapter, with the almost mandated humor and all. I'm glad someone other than myself appreciated it. It's a rather drastic change of pace after the manic clamoring through Wonderland, neh? Anyway, hope you liked this newest chapter, and thanks again!

Hikari of the Moon: (downs her champagne as her wicked Ansem plushie kicks the fairly recently gifted Sephiroth plushie in the head and chomps on his cookie) Thanks! Reviews are so awesome. So are working alerts! (quick cheer) If only characters would listen to reviews and their replies, neh? They might actually get a hint instead of angsting like sissies for the entire beginning of a chapter! (takes a moment to flail mightily at Leon) He's so Squall this chapter it's nauseating. I didn't intend for this chapter to go this way, but… but…! That's how the character was destined to be written. It'll be beautifully fixed within 2 chapters, though. That's been planned for a while, and they won't deter me! (thumbs at imaginary characters) Thanks for the congrats on the chapter, and hope you liked this one – despite how whiny our angst-muffin lion was. (grump) Oh, and as for that plot-explaining comment? Yeah… I tried to actually piece together the entire KH plotline once and came up with more plot-holes than a person can shake a stick at. My brain exploded. I am now retarded. Seriously. Like, Feffiroff retarded. Blargh.

scarlettHuntress: Well, you didn't expect Leon to come out of Wonderland smiling and goofy, did'ja? That'd be totally out of character for him! Sheesh. But no need to sob for Cloudster – things'll turn soon enough. (grin) Thanks for reviewing!

hybrid2: (cackles manically) Well, you're not alone in your hatred of Hercules from the mythological standpoint. I was twitching violently through it the first time I saw it. Rather sad. But the humor it makes possible is priceless! Cloud taking Megara's role was an irresistible path for me, and I'm glad it got you laughing – I was snickering uncontrollably while typing that scene. Anyway, Leon's just staying true to his FF8 characterization right now… do expect this to continue, even though he'll be steadily easing his head out of his rear. (smirk) Thanks for reviewing!

Sorceress Fantasia: Thank you so much for reviewing! Cloud-centric chapters are almost always interesting, at least for me, to type. The resolution of his problems with Hades is actually the only reason I even brought everyone to this movie. :) So do expect to see it happen. Anyway, hope you liked this chapter as well!

Raz: (laughs) Yeah, complete agreement from this corner about Cloud being the one character most apt to get his groove on. Thanks for the compliment! It was pretty darned irresistible; I wouldn't put it on par with the drag scene, but thanks for nearly elevating it to that level! Oh, and as for the Leon Cloud confrontation…? Eh heh. So very, very close. You'll see soon enough. And shifting gears, Hades is a blast to write. Especially when a girl's just finished watching the movie so his behavior's fresh in her mind! The violently shifts in temper are so danged much fun. Cid is thankful for your evaluation of the justification of his snarling mannerism – at least some one understands. (cackle) I'm glad you're still having fun with this fic! Hope you liked this chapter, and thanks for reviewing!

Manders1953: Reasons why it had to be that song (or sing at all)? Because that song wouldn't leave me alone and I was in desperate need of a good bout of cackling, that's why… also, they are in a sing-song Disney world, after all. (smirk) Sorry it didn't come off well for you, but I guess I just can't quite please everyone all the time. If nothing else… I never once said that he belted out in song. Only the muses were. He could've been snapping out his lines in a gruff speaking tone and/or screaming his denial across the garden. (nods vigorously) Anyway, thanks for reviewing – stay tuned for Leon's head making a satisfying 'pop' accompanied by the cranial-rectal separation within the next couple of chapters!

Li the Twilight Knight: Mwa ha ha. Giant Aerith in the debug room is uberfun. I love her. (cackle) I always loved the part where she stomps on Cloud. Freaking classic! As for your movie suggestion, I love Labyrinth as well, but I already have the movies set for this. (whines) So sorry! I'm glad you liked the song scene, by the way. (smirk) Cleon is coming up. There. I won't make you guys suffer with anticipation and wonder. Expect it to be the bonus to the next chapter. There ya go. (holds out Ansem plushie to receive delivered smooches) Anyway, I am indeed stationed on Norfolk Naval Base. Living closer to Fort Eustis, though – I can't stand to live around E1-E3 sailors and their constant partying. I love more quiet neighborhoods. (nod) Maybe that's because I'm old as snot. But oh well… and it's such a pity you don't know the people I do! There's about 2 girls in my berthing that're KH fanatics, so many guys that're gung-ho FF7 fanboys that I can't begin to count them, and a few FF8-philes as well. Then the FFX, the FF-everything, the 'Holy smokes! Wendy, you have the entire Arc the Lad collection for PS1? Can I steal it?' guys, and even a few sorry fools who've lost their souls to Chrono Trigger. Yeah – during underways, our workcenter becomes RPG heaven. Anyway, you said it right – 'The Black Hole' ends with only 4 survivors (that's if you count V.I.N.CENT) getting away from the _Cygnus_, only to go through the black hole. Kind of miserable, neh? I truly feel for poor Sora, despite the fact that I'm the one who put him through that. ;; Anyway, thanks for the PMed review!

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(drags herself to her fridge to grab a beer) Nmph. Another chapter done. (falls flat on her face and drools in a heap, leaving the Ansem plushie to dance on her back and snark "SUBMIT!") 


	52. Battle

FF7 and FF8-isms and suppositions ahead. Trying to explain how some concepts that were never explained in the videogames could work.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or Hercules. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 52  
The Gummi Expert – Battle

Yeah, my eyes damned near rolled straight out of my fucking head. Some fucking lion.

Big, nasty looking beast hovering in place, looking at its challenger like he was nothing more than a piddly little bug to be smashed. All claws and horns and feathery wings and bladed tail with red eyes that didn't give a damn about the world around it. Looked like something we should've faced off with in Wonderland, actually.

Then my ears caught Leon's soft whisper that he knew that damned thing. "Wait a second," I snapped, "you've seen this fucker before? When? Where?"

His eyes were glued to the hovering lion-demon thing. He answered me with almost predictable silence. Fuck head.

"And you're sayin' your Hercules kid beat that thing?" I questioned, looking down at that plump excuse for a satyr. "The other shit I can believe, but that? That looks like…."

Tell the truth, I didn't want to think 'bout what it looked like. It was eerily reminiscent of a summon from home – or of that beast that Leon became when he faced off with the Jabberwock in Wonderland.

The satyr chuckled, his fat belly jiggling. "Ol' Herc put the hurt on that bad-boy, all right! First thing, he punched that orb the critter comes in before it ever even reached the ground! Didn't give it a chance to form like this! Then I got a willing guy to touch it – somehow he was able to talk to the damned thing, and Herc had frightened it so bad that it instantly gave up the fight and decided to work for me in the tournament like I had that guy tell it to. See, it can be beaten really easily. Your boy just didn't act fast enough."

"It wasn't properly summoned when Hercules faced it. No one was junctioning it."

Both the satyr and I looked at Leon. "What'd you say?" I instantly questioned.

"No one had it junctioned. Guardian Forces need to be junctioned before they can properly assume a physical form." Leon finally focused his gaze on us. Blinking those hazy gray eyes of his, he frowned. "They bring themselves fully into reality by dissolving and reassembling the molecular structure of their host – if they are formed without a junctioned host, they're very weak, hence how cadets and mindless monsters are able to best Guardian Forces and draw them. It'll be tougher this time around; a host has junctioned it. It's corporeal. And as it's summoned, we can't just draw it from its host."

I blinked, my confusion barreling across my features. Yeah, it was yet another one of those times that I didn't have flaming clue what Leon was babbling about. "You know, I didn't get a single lick of that," I commented blandly.

"I'm not surprised," he huffed before turning his focus back to the arena.

We both watched as Cloud shrugged and brandished his overcompensating sword before him, his Mako eyes looking with cool detachment at his opponent.

"First will be spell destruction," Leon's voice quietly muttered.

"Eh?" I asked.

Light exploded around Cloud's body, fizzling into a purple cloud and racing off into nonexistence.

Cloud lifted one of his hands, his Wizard Bracelet shining brilliantly with all the colors of the materia he had loaded.

Then he was blinking in confusion, shaking that hand wildly and staring at his bangle.

"The fuck!" I exclaimed.

Leon's muttering met my ears. "Probably eliminated the store of magical energy you guys use to draw power from your materia and form it into spells."

"No worries, Cloud! I'll get you some ether!" I shouted, rising from my seat.

"Next is _Quake._"

Just as that soft, prophetic declaration leaked past Leon's lips, an unnaturally powerful earthquake roared through the arena. The ground buckled powerfully below us, throwing Cloud easily into the air even as it crumbled the stands me, Leon and the Heartless were on. As stones fell and people screamed while they were crushed, that damned satyr ran for his lily-lickin' life and hid away.

When the quake subsided, I lifted my head and blinked the dust out of my eyes. I almost felt nauseous when I saw what I was surrounded with.

Everyone who'd been watching the tournament with me was dead; mangled corpses lay scattered about like chunks of broken dolls, lifeless and inert. Only people who'd made it through? Me. The Heartless, who'd conveniently went into that blasted save-all two-dimensional form he favors so much when he's in trouble. Leon, who looked like he'd just jumped straight off the stands and landed on top of one of the pillars that managed to remain standing at the edge of the fighting area of the arena, gunblade in hand.

To make things even better, the fucking doorway out of the damned Coliseum that'd take me back to the gummi was covered in rubble. Plus the remains of the walls were too damned high to be easily scaled.

Unless I was ready to break my neck climbing up a vertical wall with that whore-licker lion behind me and ready to do another spell like that, I was stuck.

Damn me and my assumption that all I was going to do all day was watch Cloud make an ass of himself! Left my Venus Gospel back on the gummi. And that asshole Cloud was the only person to have materia anymore – we'd all decided after the whole fucking fiasco with the near destruction of the Planet and the true nature of materia and all that stupid shit that we wouldn't make a habit of tempting fate by dragging the Lifestream into orbs for our use and trusted everything we had to Spiky the Whiny Bitch. Fuck.

"Cid!" Cloud's voice cried.

I turned and barely managed to get my hand up in time to catch the Wizard Bracelet that had been flung at my head. "The hell?" I shouted.

"I don't know how," Cloud started, his explanation panted and interrupted as he hastily dodged around to avoid being smashed into oblivion as Mr. Floaty-Lion had decided to put those big damned claws into use, "but it stole all of my magic energy!"

Ah hah. Explains why Cloud had been shaking his hand around like a retard earlier.

"Cid, Cloud, _Tornado_," Leon's voice shouted even as he sprang from his perch and charged towards the monster.

Mother fucker! Wish the god damned idiot gunblading cunt would tell us more than five blasted seconds before it decided to wallop us!

Sure enough, there me and Spiky were, sucked up in a giant fucking tornado and flung into the air.

"Cid! Grab on!" Cloud snapped at me even as he grabbed my wrist.

I didn't need his fucking order to comply. I grabbed onto his arm tight as I could, holding onto him for dear life as he used that freaky wing of his to flap around and attempt to set us somewhat gently back on the ground.

Leon had dodged the entire mess. Looked like my buddy the Heartless did, too. Fact was, the little Shadowy dipshit wasn't anywhere to be seen! Ass. Can't blame him for running away, but shit! If I was stuck in the arena, he very well should be, too.

Next thing I saw, Leon had a cloud of purple sparklies flash off his ass, too. Looked like even Superboy wasn't fucking immune.

Or maybe he was.

'Cause next thing, he dragged his hand before him, his lips curling with a scowl as he bit, "Eat _Meltdown."_

A big fucking blast of fiery looking magic erupted from the air right in front of him, barreling right on, around and through the monster. The critter shuddered as our very first counter-offensive strike hit. Me and Cloud barely got out of firing range in time to avoid the blast.

"God damn it, you stupid fucktard!" I cried out, shaking a fist angrily at Mr. Leather. "Look before you cast!"

"He doesn't have time, Cid," Cloud softly said at my side even as Leon was sent running to avoid a swipe of giant claws and a pinpointed _Quake_ spell. "Listen. Get over by that pillar. I'll join Leon in keeping its attention off of you. Use everything you've got with that materia!"

"Don't have to tell me twice," I groused even as Cloud hefted that giant fucking sword of his and took off to join the idiot gunblader in being blasted by spells.

Even as Leon staggered when a wallop of that bladed tail hit home, Cloud arrived at his side to whack at the creature that was giving our scar-faced comrade problems.

Then Leon did something that really scared the shit out of me. Something I'd only seen in Wonderland.

After nothing more than a good second of concentration, he burst into movement, going so damned fast that I almost couldn't see him at all. Hell, I was impressed. Even Cloud was stunned – he just stared, his mouth gaping like a retarded fish's.

I swiftly looked over the Wizard Bracelet Cloud had tossed to me.

"You flaming moron!" I snarled even as I glared.

Three green, two yellow, two red and one blue were what he had loaded. Master Fire, Master Lightning and Master Cure magic. Enemy Skill and Sense command. Bahamut ZERO and Knights of the Round summon. Quadra Magic support. And the jackass had his Quadra Magic linked with his Cure.

Donning the bangle, I glanced at the lion.

With a growl, I summoned the most powerful group on that fucking bangle.

Cloud's voice cheered as the sky overhead whirled, blue color parting to show stars.

Then the unthinkable happened – the fucking creature looked up, huffed, and parted its big fucking jaws.

In a flash of bright light, the summon just came to a fucking stop!

"The hell!" I shrieked right before it turned its gaze to me. Then I felt it – every cell in my body got up and did the mambo as that horrible purple light burst from my body. My strength was sapped away in an instant, leaving me staggering in place. I shook my head violently, then it hit me – I had no more fucking magic! The energy that we all house within us, used to harness the power of the materia we have (or, in the cases of Aerith, Donald and that yutz Sora, to call upon magic just by focusing that energy and drawing the spell effect into reality with a shout of the spell's name), was sapped away by our opponent. Asshole!

I screamed a bright obscenity as a sweep of a bladed tail almost fucking lopped my legs out from under me, sending me crashing into the remains of the stands.

Then I was cursing as a glass vial smashed into my head, bouncing off my skull and clattering onto the ground.

"OW! Gaw fucking damn i… wait a second." I stared at the vial, reaching to it with a shaking hand. "An elixer?"

A smirk crossed my lips as I uncorked it and poured it over my head. Wowzers, do those things feel damned good!

Jumping to my feet, I ripped the bangle off my arm and quickly rearranged my materia even as Leon let a pained yelp fly across the arena and Cloud screamed his name. I heartily ignored them, swiftly rearranging things to my liking.

Fucking summons would be useless. This lion character dealt with them too easily. And those fucking spells? Against that bitch? Doubted they'd have much effect. Which left me with Master Cure materia for the stupid morons that were flailing with their too-overdone swords at the monster, Sense, Enemy Skill and Quadra Magic.

Heh. Maybe I could use that Enemy Skill and start blasting away our big fluffy opponent's magic. With a grin, I slapped it and Quadra Magic together to quadruple the effect.

"Cid! Magic!" Leon shouted.

Looking up, I grimaced. Cloud was being smacked around like a sorry bitch, his big sword stuck in the ground and his body being flung through the air. Leon, a pissy look crossing his face, ran forward and started whacking at that big lion with everything he had – after eight good explosive hits, he paused, energy gathering into that glowy blue blade of his, then pounded it up, sprang into the air after it, and started wailing away like mad.

I ignored him and ran to Cloud's side when he finally smashed back into the ground. "Fucking jackass," I snapped right before grappling with that green materia I had.

Cloud sighed in relief as he sat up, the _Cure_ sealing up a few of his more grievous wounds. "Thanks," he muttered.

"Get back in there, retard!" I snapped.

With a snort, he turned and ran. A few quick steps saw him sailing into the air, that funky sword of his springing apart and each one stationing itself around the lion, hovering in the air. With a golden glow surrounding him, Cloud zipped handily from sword to sword, bashing into the monster with each pass.

As him and his swords hit the ground and the lion looked blandly at them, I waved my hands. "Hey, stupid! Why don't'cha try me on for size?"

I wanted to get hit by the fucker. Let's see some Enemy Skill in action, eh?

I summoned Bahamut ZERO.

As predicted, the lion from hell dispelled my summon before it could even be realized.

And, as predicted, I got a purple cloud poofing away from me and my cells dancing around throughout my body.

I ducked before the next vial could hit my head, tracing the path of its trajectory to set my glare on the little Heartless. He was sitting atop a little pile of rubble, a laundry bag in his claws stuffed with various items he'd fetched from the gummi.

"Good job, buddy!" I praised as I ran to the vial.

Then I slapped my head.

God damned idiot threw me a phoenix down!

"TRY AGAIN, FUCKTARD!" I roared at the top of my lungs.

Terrified, it threw another vial at me. And another. By the fourth I was satisfied with what I got, so I turned my back on him (and fortunately didn't get walloped with a vial when I did it) and used the ether he'd almost pummeled me with.

To my disappointment, Enemy Skill hadn't picked up that magic-sucky thing.

As the kids continued their flailing, Cloud Omnislashing like a man possessed and Leon doing that thing he calls 'Lionheart' after his stupid glowing bashing-stick, dodging as well as they could as the beasty smacked them around and cast spell after spell and holy fuck, that was an _Ultima_ and thank goodness the Heartless threw phoenix downs so I could get Cloud standing again, I groused. My next try was using that Master Fire.

Yeah, I didn't expect at all what came next.

I heard Leon's voice scream my name as a bubble of light wafted around me then swept me right off my feet. I felt a yelp of shock leak from my lungs as I found I didn't fall through that bubble – instead, it swept me right up above the clouds. And up there, a swirling ball of black and gray with crackling little bolts flittering around it. A spark, a snap, an explosive burst of sound barreled from it, flooding my ears with fucking terrible racket and making my teeth grind uncontrollably in my skull. My marrow was fucking hurting. Then that ball blasted itself out in a quick series of rings of darkness, each one pummeling into me as solidly as something physical, tearing into my body and ripping me to shreds.

Just as I thought I could take no more, that one more pounding blast of the attack would see me dead, it came to an end. Then the fucking bubble fluttered out of existence.

I screamed like a spanked bitch as I plummeted towards the ground. Cloud managed to snatch me before I pressed my forehead into the stony floor, though, and set me on my feet.

And sure enough, right as we landed another _Quake_ ripped through the place.

I saw pretty red light hovering on the edges of my senses, a soft heat flooding my body in a land of nothing but black and cold. Feathery touches traced over my skin, making me shiver and damned near making me snicker as it tickled me.

When I finally pried my eyes open, Cloud was sighing in relief right before lurching away when that lion smacked the back of his head with a clawed hand. Then Leon was taking a flying leap right over my prone body and laying into the critter with his gunblade again.

I stumbled to my feet, taking a glance through my yellow materia.

As my brain pondered how much more of this shit the critter could take, I quickly harnessed my magic energy and poured it through the yellow Sense materia. Then I looked at our opponent.

Then I promptly fell on my ass.

"What the fuck _is_ this thing?" I screeched.

Leon panted as he skidded to a halt by my side, quickly throwing his hand forward. The _Tornado_ that was being cast at me rebounded off of Leon's hastily erected _Reflect_ and ripped apart what little remained of the Coliseum, tearing the walls down and flinging bits of stand, ground and pillars into the air to rain down on the administrative buildings that completed the complex. "It's Griever," he tiredly huffed in reply to my ponderings.

"Griever? Isn't that what you call your fucking necklace?" I asked, arching a brow at him.

He snarled as a light formed then shattered all around me. "Just a coincidence that my pendant and that share the same name," he growled. "Fuck. It cast _Dispel._ But yeah, that's Griever." Grabbing my wrist, he yanked me up and ran with me as the monstrous lion charged to our location, barely dodging out of its way. "A Guardian Force."

"The fuck?" Guardian force... what the hell is that?

He paused, falling silent even as he ran with me. Stopping only after Cloud had drawn the critter's attention with a solidly planted sword attack to the back between those big feathery wings, Leon's eyes were almost… dare I say pained… as he looked at me. "We faced it on my world. Why it's here, I don't know."

"And you beat it last time you fought it?" I hopefully questioned, my eyes widening slightly.

"Barely," he sighed, staring at it. "We lost Quistis to the flow of time when we fought it. Selphie fell right before we lay the final blow. Zell and Rinoa were still outside of the area of attack, unable to join the battle thanks to Ultimecia's meddling. Irvine and I were barely standing when it went down."

I blinked. Sure enough, he was babbling random jibberish again. "So… you beat it. It just took a whole lot."

"Yeah," he helpfully replied before bubbles of purple light burst from him and flew to the creature he'd called 'Griever.' The next thing I knew, Leon was damned near flung right out of the arena entirely when that spell he'd called _Meltdown_ blasted the ever-livid shit out of him.

Standing up, I snarled. A quick check of my Enemy Skill materia let that snarl melt into a sneer. "Let's see how you like it, you puss-sucking ass-chewing monkey fucker!"

See, the Skill Griever'd used on me happened to be conveniently stored in my Enemy Skill materia.

I cackled as I reached into it and blew out with _Shockwave Pulsar_. Four times over. God bless Quadra Magic.

As Griever was swept into the air in a big bubble of sparkly light to make his four forthcoming dates with that ball of black pain above, I dashed away from my hiding spot – I knew that'd be where the critter would look the moment it landed.

Griever slammed into the ground – and apparently, Leon'd been busy summoning from the spot he'd been flung to while the lion was getting smashed with its own Skill thanks to my materia.

I screamed and dashed away, grabbing Cloud by the longest spike of his hair and dragging him with me in my wild escapade. Despite his loud protests, I hauled my ass and his as fast as I could go past those flattened arena doors, making haste to get as far from this fucker as I could.

The world turned swirly mad rainbow colors as that thing of nightmares, that beast of a bare-breasted woman with the mass for her head and steel wings flapping slowly, descended from the blackened heavens and warped reality around itself again.

As light flashed and the clouds were sent barreling into the heavens, as the dark stars above were revealed for a second before every ounce of air around us and most of the rubble of the arena's remains were flung into the vacuum of space, as my ears rang and felt like they'd been ruptured when the atmosphere slammed itself back together and repaired itself with an explosive kabang, I whined and held onto the ground and Cloud's hair for dear life.

Next thing, my hand was being pried off of my blond buddy's head and Cloud was being hefted to his feet.

Lifting my head, I turned a befuddled look up to Leon even as he slung one of Spiky's arms over his broad shoulders and stumbled as he tried to maintain his own footing.

"Wha…?" I tried to begin.

Looking around, I happily noted that while the arena was nothing but a smoldering pit, that fucking lion Griever was gone.

"It's done," Leon's voice cracked before he shuffled off, Cloud supporting him as much as he was supporting Cloud, towards what little remained standing of the Coliseum complex.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Yes, I called it magic energy. I thought it'd be exceptionally corny to call it MP or Magic Points. I don't imagine the characters would refer to MP as such. Sorry if you disagree, but please do live with it. (sickeningly sweet smile)

And for those of you wondering why Leon was still able to use spells after being 'blasted' by Griever when Cloud and Cid had their spell-casting abilities revoked, it's simply owing to the differences in the game systems. Leon stocks spells, not MP. So when Griever blasts away magic, he blasts away a certain spell, leaving you with the rest of your stock minus that spell. And seeing as how a person can have 3200 spells stored on a single character… even if you have spells junctioned to every stat, stat/elem defense and attack, you still have an impressive amount remaining to cast like a mad idjit without risking any repercussions to your character's stats without whatever it was Griever just eliminated for you.

Only thing that truly pissed me off during the fight against Griever was (a) Ultimecia picked _Quistis_ of all people to be in my party and I didn't have anything junctioned to her, (b) _Selphie_ replaced Quistis and she didn't have anything junctioned to her either, and (c) I lost fucking Bahamut to Griever even though Irvine had 1000 compatibility with the dragon because Griever got his 'I get to blow away your summon' attack in before Bahamut showed up. Grr.

* * *

Review replies:

terracannon876: I'm glad you liked the tournaments! I was rather disappointed with the incredibly short length, but I really couldn't bring myself to put any more effort into it than I already had. As for Squall's access to other GFs, I'll explain that soon enough. (smirk) Lemme just say that I'm basing this off of my FF8 game – I have a 1000 Eden and a 1000 Shiva. Yeah, it's nauseating, isn't it? Took me almost 40 hours to get Eden that compatible. Anyway, enough blathering from me! Hope you liked this newest chapter (and the subsequent answer to your last question), and thank you for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: Well, FF8 was not exactly the happiest of videogames, even though it did have its moments of raucous humor and silliness. So yeah… he was all 'angst-whine.' And considering what Leon had just gone through, I couldn't really see him having a different reaction. I'm glad you're not of the opinion that it wrecked the chapter! Was just trying to keep him relatively true to his base characterization, after all. :P Oh, and that thing? You've just read about it, neh? Not a chimera – Griever. Griever kicks bootay. Just not as much as Eden, in my ever so humble (cough) opinion. (grin) My brain made as complete of a recovery as it was capable of – hopefully it's enough to keep this story rolling. (crosses her fingers, then glowers at the Ansem plushie who's dancing around with vulgar pelvic thrusts and taunting the Sephiroth plushie to bring it on) Thanks for submitting your review!

Melodious Flurry: (absconds with Mickey plushie) Yeah, Cloud's fight was a bit… hairy, neh? Mwa ha ha. Thanks for the plushie, thanks for the review, and hope you enjoyed this chapter! (glomp)

scarlettHuntress: Aw, who's to say that Leon's necessarily psychotic? I'd put him more as avoidant/dependant with a heavy paranoid and obsessive/compulsive streak, maybe some mild schizophrenic (by the way, this does not mean multiple personalities, despite common misconception) tendencies to boot. (cackles manically) Oofta… this is what happens when you've stared at the DSM faaaar too long just to research a fanfic. Blaaaagh. Thanks for reviewing!

DC: Thank you so much! First time reviews are so awesome to receive. :) Griever vs. Hercules… (cackle) I seriously can't imagine him defeating Griever, either. Anyway, back on tangent – thanks for your compliments about my inclusion of back-story and characterization (and Zack! I love Zack). Those are my most valued reviews – I've seen so many terrible representations of Leon that I've made it my personal quest to bring my FF8 darling into fandom as much as possible, even if it doesn't meet with people's approval. FF7 guys I'm a bit more tried with, seeing as how I've only beaten that game once… ever. Yeah. I have the script, I _have_ beaten it, but only once. Whereas FF8 I go and play so I can drool at the Ragnorak smashing into the side of Lunatic Pandora in perty FMV mode. Heh heh. Griever battle was a freaking pain with that lousy 'blasting away of magic' ability that the GF has… that was what gave me the most trouble. Oddly enough, Griever and Omega Weapon are the only two things to ever make me see that accursed broken gunblade on the 'Game Over' screen, too. Lousy (the contents herein are heavily censored. Witness the vulgar dancing of the Ansem plushie instead). Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing, and hope you like the newest chapter!

Li the Twilight Knight: Mwa ha ha. The big lionic thing that they polished off in this chapter was the GF carried by Ultimecia. I wouldn't bother bringing in Omega Weapon, as just thinking of that (more heavy censorship. More vulgarly dancing Ansem plushie) makes me cry in utter frustration. I've always thought that 'Zero' is a great song for Leon and Cloud, but I'm warped and desperately in love with Smashing Pumpkins. Either that or 'The Perfect Drug' by NIN. Trent Reznor is god… (drools all over herself in horribly cliché fangirl stylization) But also a great 'get together' song for them would be 'Paradise' from the Wolf's Rain OST. So perty! Bleagh, I've blathered too long. Fort Eustis is off the 64 right between Newport News and Williamsburg, about 7 minutes from Busch Gardens. Happy place! And hope you liked the chapter – and the subsequent bonus!

hybrid2: Yay! I'm not the only person who liked introspective Squall! (quickie glomp) BTW, kudos to you for getting me to burst into laughter in the middle of my work center by reading your review about Cloud's walloping of Leon. KH Leon frightened the snot out of me. He _talked._ With _regularity._ And _smiled _at Sora! My eyes cry blood. Thanks for reviewing!

Manders1953: You know, that song's my favorite one from Hercules, too. The one our movie's protagonist sings makes me want to drop him off a cliff with a boulder strapped to his wiener. (shakes head) Yeah, it was random… but I'd just watched it! It was funny! And thanks for the clarification that you weren't totally put off by it. (grin)

cheeky doggie: Wowzers. Story sure is getting long if it's taking 2-3 days to read it! Thanks for your dedication in doing so, and thanks so much for reviewing! I'm glad you enjoyed the Sora chapters even though you had no idea/clue about the movies they were taking place in. I'm happy that the story was effective enough that one could enjoy them without the experience of having seen the ultimate in ancient Disney cheese. (nod) And I'm also happy that my typing of Wonderland got the reactions out of you that it did! Reading reviews like this always make my day. Your suspicions are very correct in every aspect concerning our Shadowy friend, BTW. (applause) Glad you're hooked, hope you like this newest chapter, so on and so forth! Thanks again!

Azuna: Hey, no problem for anon reviews! I'm lazy when it comes into the 'logging in' thing, too. Thanks for reviewing! Oh, and that round 49 of the Hades cup? I'm happy you got the marvelous opportunity to snicker uncontrollably at my pain and suffering. Sheesh. (smirk) Yeah, I realized that it becomes soooo much easier to wipe the floor with the Fantastic Foursome (woo, that sounds kinky) if you take out the gunblade-wielding idjit first when I decided to demolish the remainder of my sanity and beat that round for another person (I also beat Sephiroth for him… and it was only then that I realized how much easier normal mode is than proud mode. Damn me and my 'I can do _any_ KH game in the ultimate hardness mode! Im teh OMG awesomeness!111!11!pudding!1!!! Hmph). Screw Cloudster, though – gimme Squall. (cackles, runs from flames) Anyway, thanks again for reviewing! And as for that comment about writing as well as me? Well… thanks! (flush) I don't think I'm that great, but I'm glad you think it's adequate.

increase: Thank you so very much for your compliments and review! Yeah, I completely agree that all KH fans should play FF7 and FF8. It'd clear up so much – but then again, it'd make your brain hurt to go back to the craptastic polygons and the rough in-game animation. Woo, the graphics of 7 broke my brain. 8 made me shudder until I got to pretty pretty FMVs that were more gorgeous than anything in KH, IMHO (Balamb Garden is so freaking awesome when it's barreling towards FH). Anyway! Thanks again, and I certainly hope you enjoy the rest of the story!

* * *

(tiptoes in, waving the addy to the new bonus chapter) As always, remove the spaces after each dot and slash.

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ bcd52-5. html

There. Now stop taking bites out of my back, oh ravenous ones. (lays down so the Ansem plushie can apply more Neosporin-soaked strips of gauze) Mmph. Just do as the plushie says, neh? (grumps as the plushie flashes the victory sign before snapping, "Give yourself to the darkness!") No, no… Submit! That's what you're supposed to say. Sheesh.


	53. Wander

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII or Hercules. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 53  
The Heartless – Wander

I think Cid was mad at me. Why, I couldn't begin to comprehend. But the way he looked at me, the way he swiped his boot towards me, the way he threw those vials I'd been lobbing at him right back at my skull, he seemed rather peeved.

Well…? They all rather seem the same to me. Maybe at one time I might have known what they are, but all I know right now is that they're helpful.

Instead of trying to dwell on Cid's behavior and the rather blatant lack of presence of Leon and Cloud, I decided to start picking up those items I'd thrown onto the arena floor for use that never were utilized. Shuffling around, I picked up everything that shined and sparkled.

For some reason, my bag seemed considerably heavier when I finally returned to Cid's side and offered it to him. Perhaps all of the items I'd found weren't exactly our own….

Oh well. If they weren't, then I'd found them on the bodies that were littering the arena area. Not like corpses would need restorative items any longer.

Cid snatched my bag away as I offered it, holding his head with his free hand and growling something that I was certain would be exceptionally derogatory. With a shake of his head, he bit harshly on the filter of his smoldering cigarette and pointed back towards the only standing building there was.

He must've wanted me to go back to the gummi. With ambling steps, I decided it would probably be in my best interests to comply.

Making my way to the last remnants of the Coliseum structure to remain upright, that administrative front that held its grand lobby where the tall man with curly red hair, bulging forearms and nothing more than a toga to cover his nakedness frequently was found standing, I pushed my way in under the doors that had been knocked askew by the spells hurled during Cloud's battle.

Two people were conversing in the lobby. Cocking my head with curiosity, I slowly approached.

The creature that sported the body of a rotund human male and the legs and horns of a goat was waving his hands at that overly muscled toga-wearing man that seemed to garner everyone's respect and awe around this place (excluding my traveling companions, that is – I doubt that Leon, Cloud or Cid would ever show anyone respect or awe). They seemed to be having a heated debate about something – right before goat-man shouted and pointed at me before scrambling behind the tall toga-guy.

Toga-guy strode over in naught more than three swift and easy steps. I simply stared up at him, my antennae almost flat down my back as I stared up at him with unblinking eyes, my posture stooped and my body held as still as possible.

I damned near panicked as I was wrenched off of the floor by my antennae. Still, I forced my clawed hands to remain still at my sides and just looked at the guy who'd decided to yank me off the floor.

Toga-guy and goat-man shared a few rather intense words for a few moments before another voice entered the fray – Cid's sharp bellow, for some odd reason, made toga-guy put me down. Shaking my head roughly, I stared at them as the three of them apparently began to bicker.

With a shrug, I picked a passageway and began to wander down it. After all, goat-man was blocking the doorway, and I didn't particularly feel like confronting him or his overly muscled friend.

I wandered, lost and alone, down hallway after hallway. Sometimes a random turn would leave me staring at a caved in tunnel. Other times I would end up back at the arena I'd started at.

After time, I came across Leon and Cloud. They were in some discussion with a tall guy with blue fire for hair. For some reason, Cloud was staring at Leon with huge eyes, and Leon was…

Dare I say, he was smirking wildly, rather like a cat that had finally caught the canary.

And that blue guy? Yeah, he turned red. The corridor was practically on fire.

Then Leon rolled his eyes, held out his hand, and bathed the poor fellow in a billowing cloud of ice.

It was then that he and Cloud caught sight of me, marching right passed the enraged man they'd apparently wrapped up their conversation with. Leon stooped before me, lightly patting my head between my antennae.

Even as the guy they'd turned their backs on raged and burst into hot red flames, Cloud turned and flipped him off.

Gutsy!

Then Cid shouted something – apparently, he'd followed me right to our missing companions – before tossing his bangle at Cloud. With a flourish of his hand that billowed his cloak dramatically around him, the younger blond caught it and slapped it onto his arm.

I shuddered as a globe of light burst around the pissed off fiery guy and swept him into the sky. Looked like the same thing that caught Cid, then got that lion guy. Yikes.

With a shrug, Cloud turned to Leon and said something. With a nod, Leon hefted me easily under one of his arms and began to walk. I obediently hung like an overstuffed sack as the three of them marched steadfast right past toga-guy and goat-man and made it back out to the gummi.

Once inside our vessel, we began to settle ourselves down. After putting me down, Leon and Cloud went off to discus something as Cid dug through our belongings and threw his shirt off into the designated 'laundry corner.'

Next thing I knew, Cid was screaming happily, wrenching me off the ground and cuddling the stuffing out of me. Just as I was tempted to claw the crap out of him to make him put me down, he dropped me flat on my face and ran off to the back room of the gummi ship with one of the things I'd found in the arena and stuffed into my laundry bag in hand.

Apparently I'd found something he needed? Hell if I know.

Meandering over to the co-pilot's chair, I hoped into it and popped open the storage compartment that was in the dash of the ship. Pulling out a pad of paper and a pencil, I hastily doodled something and hopped over to Leon.

After taking a moment to study my picture of the gummi ship with rockets flaring, he took my pencil and added a sketch of a boy holding the Keyblade and an arrow pointing from our vessel going to him.

He meant that we were going to be on our way?

Hope pouring through my empty chest, I hugged that pad of paper to myself.

We were finally on our way to find him.

Him….

The Keyblade Master.

The one who could show me the way to my light.

So…

...ra.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies:

hybrid2: You know, the most pleasure I ever had with the Ultimecia fight (by the way, you _did_ catch that right – Ultimecia professed that she junctioned _herself_ to Griever rather than the other way around) was when I had all three people without junctions tethered to them brought into the battle, all three smashed to pieces by Shockwave Pulsar… then watched my party come back thanks to the Phoenix. _That_ was cracktastically wonderful and cheap. (grin) I'm glad you're proud of getting me to laugh myself stupid in my work center. :P And I'm very happy to read that you liked the battle through Cid's eyes! Cid's always so danged much fun to type. Anyway, glad you liked the last chapter, and hope this one satisfies as well!

cheeky doggie: Thanks so much for informing me that you could piece together what was going on, even without any knowledge from FF7 or FF8. That does mean a lot. (grin) Enemy Skill - it's when you sample an enemy, you have a chance of learning that enemy's 'special' move. Like in KH2, where you pick up the dragoon's 'jump' by learning the attack. Kind of like that. Sense is a skill that lets you see the health bar of your enemy and some random information about it, like strengths/weaknesses towards elements and stuff. Like in KH, how you couldn't see the enemy's health bar until you got the skill to do it. There you go! And that bit at the end? Not a finishing move. That was an Eden summon, which given what Cid witnessed in Wonderland, Cid should be (rightly) terrified of. So yeah, Leon was happily using his Guardian Force. I'm an utter Eden whore when I play FF8 – she gets summoned all the freaking time. (cackle) Next to limit breaks, she's the hardest hitting thing in the game. And I'm glad you liked Phil! He's such a yutz. (smirk)

terracannon876: (laughs outright) You know, I doubt that FF7 would ever comprehend FF8. Given how many problems _players_ had going between the systems, the characters would be confused out of their wee little mind. As for the Cloud/Leon bit… I'm just a bit biased towards Leon, seeing as how Squall can easily kick Cloud's pathetic little butt. (sneer) Lionheart kicks Omnislash's pussy ass. Mwa ha ha. Actually, Leon got to do a bunch of 'saving' this fight because, well, he's fought Griever before. (winces at memories) As for Phil, he's alive and well – you'll get to see him one last time soon enough. (grin) Thanks for reviewing!

Lady Keyblade: Thanks for the compliment! Yeah, 'The Black Hole' wasn't the happiest Disney flick of all times. But it certainly is a fun one, especially for its time. Thanks for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: Thanks so much for the kind review! Yeah, my brain made its drastic recovery. I'm glad it showed in that last chapter. And Cid? Getting thrown around like a rag doll? Well… it couldn't be helped! (cackle) I mean, this was _Griever_! Griever is all sorts of awesome. Neh heh. (takes a moment to watch as Ansem plushie gets smacked with Masamune plushie and swiftly retaliates with a yank of his pull string and a snarky "What do you hope to accomplish?" before lobbing a 'horribly ugly Heartless shit of DOOM™' right back) Oh, and so glad you liked that optional chapter. Smut is so… intriguing to write. Not hard, but not easy when you're busy cackling about ludicrous stuff you're watching with your boyfriend, either. Sheesh. Watching 'Excel Saga' between fanfic typing sessions does wonders to a person's ability to think coherently. Anyway, thanks for submitting your review, and hope you liked this newest chapter!

scarlettHuntress: Aw, it's alright to be a boring reviewer! (smirk) I appreciate you taking the time to hit that little purplish button. Anyway, if you want a copy of FF8, it's actually very easy to get. Amazon has it. It's FF7 that's hard to get at a reasonable price… especially considering that the graphics make my eyeballs bleed, the characters are for the most part cookie-cutter, the translations have my brain doing the mambo in my skull and the overall plot forces my logic and most higher thought processes to honorably commit sepaku. Too. Damned. Expensive. Glad you liked the last chapter!

Raz: (hearty laugh) Awww. Your chapter 51 review did make me giggle. No need to apologize for the early 'submit' smacking! Besides, I love your reaction to Griever's 'hello.' (merry grin) I'm so happy that my action scene delivered! I put a lot of effort into them, and I'm darned pleased that it was a satisfactory payoff. The summons and Guardian Forces seem almost necessary to me – if I'm going to use the FF guys in a storyline fic, I'd better use the FF abilities, neh? And I'm glad you liked the Griever vs. Eden smack down! That's more or less from my first time through FF8's end – I was an Eden summoning fool (1000 compatibility with Squall) who actually had a STR of 162… with no junctions. You can only imagine how many T-rexaurs Squall ended up devouring. And you can only imagine how many hours long that game file is…. Anyway! Thanks so much for your complimentary comments concerning Leon's characterization. I'm glad it came off as it did – I didn't _want_ to make him a whiny little byotch. I was aiming for 'wow, his life sucks. I pity him terribly.' Thanks for telling me it came off successfully. Anyway, so happy you're still lovin' it! (takes a moment to offer Balamb's angsty lion for smacking) C'mon. He needs to be told to suck it up. Oh, and thanks for reviewing!

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(crawls in) Nngh…. Heartless chapters… too short. Damned three page limit. Grr. Bleagh….

Sorry, but it'll be a time until the next update. We're going back out to sea very shortly, then I'm going house hunting before I transfer to my next command… and I've got to watch the most wanktastic Disney movie of all time to get the script ready for Sora. Yes, ladies and gents, he's most definitely next. Huzzah! (falls over, beer in hand, while the Ansem plushie dances on her head, strikes a pose a la John Travolta and cackles out "SUBMIT!")


	54. Impetus

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Cauldron. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 54  
The Keyblade Master - Impetus

Darkness whirled everywhere.

Darkness swirled behind the doors I was slamming shut with all of my strength. Darkness wisped casually around Riku's body as he smiled painfully at me, his eyes empty before those doors closed and separated us forever. Darkness caressed Kairi's frame as she reached for me even as our lands were pulled apart.

Darkness whipped in a huge vortex that severed space, drawing light into it and crushing it utterly. Darkness clothed the probe ship that held three intrepid explorers I'd just befriended and their robot companion before dragging it forcibly into that never ending tunnel of death.

Riku's voice whispered from the darkness. "Take care of her." Kairi's voice cried from the darkness. "I know you will!" Kate's voice, Dan's voice, Charlie's voice, V.I.N.CENT's voice cried out in pain and terror as the probe ship poured itself into the black hole, never to be seen again.

Darkness whipped around my feet, crawling up my legs. I stood rooted to the stop as it slithered over my coveralls, sliding over and under and through my garments, over and under and through my skin and flesh. I cried out as it poured through my eyes, flooded my ears, saturated my marrow and lifted me towards that shut door. I screamed as it reached with its shadowy tendrils, unlocking the keyhole I'd sacrificed my best friend to in order to lock the black pith away from my home.

Beyond those doors, the black hole loomed. Caught in darkness and its pull, I was swept into its darkness, my screams eaten by the ravenous hole in space.

Then I woke up.

I stirred as I roused from my slumber, my eyes blearily blinking and forcing the world around me to come into focus.

My mouth was dry. My eyes hurt. My throat was completely raw.

And then I remembered what I'd seen before everything in my recollection faded into darkness.

The remaining personnel who made up the crew of the lost ship _Palomino_ had plunged headlong into black hole we'd barely dragged the _Excalibur_ away from.

They'd met their end, their last bid for freedom from Dr. Reinhardt's madness ending with the miserable discovery that their apprehended probe ship was programmed to plummet into that which they'd been trying to escape. Their two companions had preceded them into death, the graying scientist who sought the scientific truth behind the universe's mysteries chopped to pieces by a soulless robot and the man whose lust for self-preservation segregated him from his companions blown into the vacuum of space.

Even the wily Hans Reinhardt had met his demise, my inability to do anything worthwhile having decimated any chance he might have had at regaining sanity or continuing his life. He'd been crushed by his ship's remains with all of his addled crew.

I could have saved them. I should have saved them.

With the Keyblade, I'd saved so many other people… but they all perished under my watch.

I knew that tears would be marring my cheeks if I'd had any left to cry. However, the dried trails that already streaked down my face were evidence enough that I'd already shed them.

"Oh, you're awake! Here you go, Sora," I vaguely heard Goofy's voice proclaim from behind me.

Tilting my head slightly, focusing my dried eyes onto his doggish face, I sighed quietly and reached for the water bottle he was offering to me. "Thanks," I hoarsely whispered, my voice cracked and abused.

Even as I twisted the cap off of the bottle I'd taken and stared blankly at the water within the clear plastic vessel I held in my hand, I felt the tickle of Jiminy's tiny feet on my leg. Glancing down, I attempted to offer him a smile to assure him that I was fine. My effort fell notably short.

"Here, Sora," the cricket's tiny voice professed as he held a microscopic handkerchief up towards me.

"Thanks," I murmured for a second time since rousing from my nightmare-plagued slumber. Taking the tiny piece of fabric, I dappled at my cheeks and my nose before tucking the article into one of my coveralls' pockets.

"When you're up to it, I have a nice eulogy written in my Journal for our friends from the _Palomino_," Jiminy softly said, his voice quiet and reassuring. I nodded vaguely in response.

"Well, we can't let what happened stop us," Donald's gravelly voice sighed from the pilot's chair. "We've got to get the _Excalibur_ repaired."

"Gawrsh, I thought they repaired the gummi on the _Cygnus_," Goofy inquired, stepping to my side and scratching his chin.

"Temporary repairs," Jiminy clarified. "They didn't have any gummi blocks for us to work with."

"In other words," Donald groused, "Our maneuverability's down to next to nothing. If we have to avoid asteroids or Heartless in hyperspace, we're done for."

I sighed quietly as I finally took a draught of water and wiped the remains of any tracks of tears from my cheeks with the back of my glove. "You're right," I quietly began. "We can't stop now. We've still got worlds to save. We've still got to…."

As I trailed off, I felt rather than saw Donald and Goofy's concerned looks at me.

I felt my face pale even as a huge lump formed in my throat, preventing me from expelling my concerns from my chest and sharing them with my friends.

What if Kingdom Hearts was like the black hole we'd just escaped from?

What if, just like it, there was nothing but death on the other side of those doors? Trapped with darkness, trapped with Heartless, trapped in a world where the normal natural laws don't apply, how grand could Riku and the King's chances for survival truly be?

I felt my nose begin to run, my eyes trying desperately to produce tears as my mind went cascading down paths I'd never before bothered considering.

Had I condemned Riku and the King to death as assuredly as I had Reinhardt and the _Palomino's _crew through my inability to forcibly see my desires through? With my inaction, my lack of strength and resolve, had I sentenced them to the same fate Hans Reinhardt had sentenced everyone who'd set foot on the ill-fated _Cygnus_ to?

I could have been more forceful with Reinhardt. I could have acted more quickly with the _Palomino's_ crew. I could have helped them with their vessel even as they'd helped me with the _Excalibur_.

I could have pulled Riku through those doors and had him help me shut them from my side.

I could have leapt that rift in space that separated Kairi and me.

Everything I did was wrong….

Was I even right in what I was doing with the Keyblade?

Regardless of how much I seemed to accomplish, the Heartless never stopped. They never faded. And even those lands whose keyholes I'd shut were still plagued by darkness.

"Lookit that!" Goofy's voice cried out, jarring me out of my dejected thoughts.

"Huh?" I intelligently quipped, turning to face him and noting the direction of his gaze. Matching it with my own, I stared out of the side window.

My breath escaped me in a sharp hiss. "Oh no!" I whispered.

The world we were slowly encroaching into an orbit around in normal space was nearly completely black, the sparkle of its light overshadowed with ebon ink.

"Sora! We've gotta help!" Donald bit, turning to face me.

Closing my eyes, I willed the doubts that thrummed wildly in my mind to still. After all, regardless of recent events, I still had a responsibility. As Leon had put it to me so long ago, the Keyblade had chosen me. I had no say in the matter.

I was destined to close the doors to darkness. I was destined to open the door to the light.

I had a job to do.

"Alright," I growled, stirring as much resolve as I could and thrusting it into my forefront. "Let's get down there!"

"Hyuck!" Goofy cheerfully professed, clapping my shoulder before plopping down in his seat and buckling himself in.

It was a smooth decent and landing, the duck landing us with perfection in a small clearing just outside of a farm. Even as the gummi settled firmly onto the soft and grassy ground, its landing gear sinking slightly into the spongy ground, we stared out of the window.

It would almost be picturesque. A huge sprawling field of green surrounded by thick emerald woods and populated by various animals. Brilliantly colored birds flitted about. An old goat looked curiously at our vessel, chewing idly at the grass in its mouth. Geese, slowly finishing with their flailing panic, settled down and smoothed their feathers before the gummi.

The animals all fell into silence and fled as Goofy unlatched and dropped the hatch to our ship.

"If it's alright with you boys, I'll stay here," Jiminy volunteered. "I'd like to wrap up my entry about the _Cygnus._ Clean it up a bit, you see. And while I'm here, I'll make sure the gummi's ready to go on its next trip."

"Hey, good idea," I stated calmly. "Might as well see if you can find Hollow Bastion on our long-range sensors."

"We'll do fine," Goofy offered with a cheerful smile before he picked up his Save the King shield and marched out, holding a hand over his eyes and staring at the sky. "Gawrsh," he uttered quietly.

Donald was likewise staring at the sky, the one thing that decimated the scenic display that surrounded the _Excalibur_. Clutching Save the Queen tightly to his chest, he shook his head before looking to me.

I reluctantly stepped free of the gummi's confines, emerging onto that brilliant field overshadowed by a sky overwrought by thick dark clouds that carried with them an ill wind that stank faintly of rotting flesh. Purple lightning flickered in the sky ominously, its flash of light bringing wicked faces and twisted forms out in the billowing confines of those ominous puffs in the sky.

"Let's get to that house over there," Donald said quickly, gesturing with his wizard's rod.

Following his movement, I noticed for the first time a humble little shack situated near the protective covering of those woods that so beautifully cradled the fields with their animals. "Good idea. If someone's there, maybe we can find out what's going on with this world. Something about all of this darkness seems unnatural."

"Shucks, it doesn't even seem like it's the Heartless," Goofy mused.

We quietly ambled to the small house, our feet crunching through crisp grass and animals watching us cautiously. Reaching the front door, I lifted my hand to knock.

"Heartless!" Donald screeched, waving Save the Queen in the air before jumping up and down and belting forth with the ducky warble that always proceeds his Blizzaga spell.

I whipped around on my heals, bringing Ultima Weapon instantly to my hands.

Sure enough, a good twenty Shadows, five Soldiers and two Darkballs were behind us, their yellow eyes boring into us. Nearly a dozen of soft pink glows, hearts released from those creatures who'd stole them with their deaths at the courteous regards of Donald's spell, floated into the air and dissipated.

"C'mon!" I yelled, jumping immediately into the fray that awaited us, Ultima Weapon leading my charge as I flew headlong at the Darkballs of the gathering.

"Ah hoy hoy hoy!" Goofy screeched as he belted right in behind me, his shield up and over his face as he plunged right into a Soldier's sturdy frame and walloped it firmly. Donald snarled colorfully as he pummeled a Shadow with his rod.

A quick stop on my toes that sent blades of grass flying and a spin sent Ultima Weapon into a glittering arc that cut through the thick, dismal air around me. Shining brightly, it slammed solidly into the Darkball to my right, slicing through it cleanly and pounding into the one to my left. Drawing my weapon back with a grunt escaping my lungs, I thrust it forward and sank the Keyblade's heavily sculpted end directly into the giant Heartless' center. It burst into black smoke that whirled around me, its touch cold and creepily wet.

A flash of red fire stung my eyes as Donald broke out with a Firaga spell, incinerating many of the Shadows that were out on the field.

"Watch the fire, Donald!" I cried, quickly whipping the Keyblade before me and shouting, "Freeze!" As the icy tendrils of the Blizzaga spell coated the flaming trees and scorched grass, I wiped my brow in relief before yelping and turning to barely lift the Keyblade in time to block the oncoming kick of a Soldier.

Goofy whirled into action, his shield spinning wildly as he did, barreling through Heartless with every twirl. Donald shrieked a ducky obscenity as he dove out of the way of our tornado-imitating friend.

Smashing Ultima Weapon down onto the head of the Soldier I was facing, I lifted it quickly and charged into the only three Heartless that remained standing – two Shadows and one final Soldier. Drawing my weapon before myself, I slashed wildly, each crazed draw of the blade connecting with the relatively weak enemies.

I shivered as the final tendrils of their inky remains hissed, fading from my clothing and returning to the darkness from whence they came. Wiping beads of sweat from my brow, I let a relieved sigh escape from my lungs before sending the Keyblade back into the recesses of my heart where it normally rested.

"Gawrsh, that'll wake you up!" Goofy said brightly before letting a happy chuckle seep from his lips.

Donald growled at him before slapping his webbed feet on the ground and marching up to the shack we'd been approaching before our small, impromptu ambush. Lifting a feathery hand, he rapped loudly on the wooden portal that blocked our progression.

"Oh gosh, please give me a moment," a shaky man's voice seeped from inside of the residence.

A moment later, the gnarled wooden door creaked loudly as it was drawn open, revealing the house's inhabitant.

He was a short man, quite antiquated if I dare say so, with straight white hair that hung to his shoulder blades, tresses of those locks spilling from behind his ears to dust the junction of body and arm. A red long-sleeved shirt covered his body, encasing his rather stout and, for a fully grown man, fairly short frame in comfortable fabric comfort. Gray fingerless gloves protected his elderly hands from the elements. A maroon vest covered that nice shirt of his, a long purple skirt and thickly soled black boots finished off his ensemble. Thick gray eyebrows arched above pith black eyes as he regarded us. "Why, hello," he began, his voice hesitant.

I flashed him a bright smile, attempting to put him at ease. "How do you do? My name's Sora," I began. "These are my friends, Donald and Goofy," I added but a second later, gesturing first to the duck who nodded politely to the man and then to the bipedal dog, who rubbed the back of his head and waved.

"And I am Dallben, owner of these lands," the elderly gentleman stated, giving me a polite nod. "Indeed, how was it you managed to overcome those… those creatures?"

"Shucks, the Heartless?" Goofy blurted.

"Goofy!" Donald snapped.

"Well, you see…" I lamely attempted to amend, my mind drawing a blank as to what to say but moments after I'd opened my mouth.

"It must have to do with that fantastic weapon you'd had but a moment ago. So fascinating," the old man muttered before stepping back. "Oh, gracious. What kind of host am I being? I should like to show you my gratitude for chasing those terrible creatures away."

"Gosh, thanks," I stated as I took his invitation and entered his warm, comfortable little house. Stepping carefully into the rather cluttered main room, I looked around, letting a small smile seep onto my lips as I took in the sights.

It was simple, rustic, and functional yet still cozy. A heavy wooden table with some roughly hewn chairs sat near a bookshelf laden with books. A large orange cat lay curled upon the hearth of a squat brick fireplace in which a hearty fire crackled invitingly. A pot bubbled in that fireplace, delicious smells oozing from it. My shoes squeaked over gnarled floorboards as I traipsed around, looking at book titles and scratching my chin.

"Mm, smells delicious!" Donald's scratchy voice professed from near that bubbling kettle. Goofy hyucked in agreement.

"Well, it's very nearly dinner time. Come, join an old man," Dallben said quite cheerfully.

We happily obliged, pulling chairs to his table and eating from simple wooden bowls with rough wooden spoons. It was rather charred and tasted a might bit ashy, but it was still quite edible stew that the old man served.

"So, on to business. You, good lad, have the power to overcome the newest servants of the Horned King. Quite impressive, quite impressive!" Dallben stated, curling his hands together upon the table.

I blinked, looking up at him even as Goofy politely took my bowl away and made his way to the small tub Dallben's house possessed for the purpose of washing dishes. As the bipedal dog and the duck busied themselves with cleaning up for our elderly host, I sighed and nodded. "Yeah. I've seen them before. It's my business to get rid of them."

"Then perhaps you could help us," he stated quietly, leaning back and scratching his chin before shutting his eyes and morosely wagging his head back and forth. "Oh, I do fear that I may have sent young Taran and dear Hen Wen into danger's path. Especially now, that those creatures that serve the Horned King have tracked Hen Wen to my very farm."

"Taran and Hen Wen, sir?" I quietly inquired.

"Oh, oh yes. You wouldn't know of them, would you? Don't believe I've ever seen any of you in these parts before. Not from around here, are you?"

A slight smile curled my lips. "Not exactly."

"Well, then. Taran is my assistant. He helps me care for Hen Wen," Dallben began, leaning forward to rest his elbows upon the table's top and lacing his fingers together once more. "Hen Wen is a special pig that I have the privilege of caring for – she can see things no other can."

"See things?" I blindly poked.

"Yes. I sent Hen Wen with Taran as a guardian to the hidden cottage at the edge of the forbidden forest. The Horned King is seeking Hen Wen to take from her the location of the Black Cauldron."

Scratching my chin, I frowned. "So this pig knows where some cauldron is… and this guy that the Heartless are working for is after her?"

"It's not just 'some cauldron,' boy!" Dallben huffed in exasperation. "The Black Cauldron."

I flushed slightly, bowing my head. "I'm sorry, sir, but I don't know about this 'Black Cauldron.'"

"My, you are from a remote land, aren't you lad?" Dallben breathed. "Very well, then. I'll tell you the tale."

I leaned back in my chair, listening raptly as he began to spin his tale.

"Legend has it, here in our very land of Prydain, there was once a king so cruel and so evil that even the gods feared him. One day, a revolt to throw him from his throne occurred – the people tried to imprison him, to exile him, to smite him, all to no avail. Since he could not be killed by human hands and since no prison could hold him, he was thrown alive into a crucible of molten iron."

I winced. "Holy smokes. That's quite a way to off someone," I groused.

"Quite right, my lad," Dallben agreed with a nod of his head. "But he was not completely destroyed. Rather, his demonic spirit was captured in the form of the great Black Cauldron, where his magic and his evil continue to rage. So wicked is it that it draws all with evil in their hearts to it without mercy. And so, for uncounted centuries, the Black Cauldron has lay hidden. It's waiting, lad, while evil men search for it, knowing that whoever possesses it would have the power to resurrect an army of deathless warriors and, with them, rule the world."

Staring, I couldn't bring myself to blink. My mouth sagged open as I thought about the impact of his story.

A way for evil to overcome the world.

A device that could make way the easy victory for darkness.

"So your Hen Wen knows where it is?" I asked, bolting from my seat and slapping my hands on Dallben's table.

He stared at me, blinking owlishly. "Why, yes. Such is why I sent her and Taran away. I pray they were able to escape before those shadowy things arrived… and the gwythaints! Their cries echo over the lands these days."

"Donald, Goofy!" I called, drawing their attention. "Dallben, sir, with your permission, I'd like to seek out your friend and your pig. I think this Black Cauldron might be why the Heartless… eh, those shadowy things on your land… are here. If we can find and destroy this Black Cauldron, we can stop them from appearing!"

"Truly, boy?" he gasped, his eyes wide. "Then, by all means, go! Find Taran and Hen Wen, and pray they are capable of helping you. And please, see them through their quest safely."

With his blessing, we hurriedly left the farm, Dallben's quickly shouted directions resonating in my mind.

No hesitation clung to me as I sprang headlong towards his 'forbidden forest,' the impetus of stopping the Heartless from successfully assisting this 'Horned King' and overtaking this world of Prydain egging me on.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies:

terracannon876: Oh, so sorry to hear that your FF8 disc corrupted before you could get the most awesome GF ever. Sucktastic. Anyway, thanks for reviewing first off, and secondly, I guess to some people it's weird to see him as an uke – I've always pictured him as such. (cackle) Maybe I've been cracked upside my head a few too many times by equipment in my work center, but oh well. Glad you liked it, and… well, next chapter should clear up a considerable amount of what the Heartless saw.

Hikari of the Moon: Hey! It's good sometimes to have a Sora chapter, yes? Yes? (whimpers, ducks head, sighs) Well, I like the squirt. Sometimes. Anyway, I couldn't see Hercules having a pleasant reaction to Heartless bobbling around outside of the arena, so, well, considering that they _are_ the decimators of the worlds, of course he'd be mean. Sheesh. (grin) Anyway, hope this chapter met to your expectations!

Melodious Flurry: Aw, thanks so much! (ducks as yet another evil Ansem plushie flies towards her) ACK! (runs for her life) Eh heh. Anyway, glad you liked the last chapter, and thanks for the review.

cheeky doggie: Thanks for the luck wishes. They did indeed help – we found a place rather quickly, and now we're struggling through the fun and joy of packing and moving (gag, die) Anyway! You'll find out soon enough why Cid squealed like a school girl. And thanks for reviewing, btw!

scarlettHuntress: Well, to each their own… (shies away from FF7 and glomps her copy of FF8 (and all of her FF8 sheet music for her piano) protectively) Anyway, thanks for reviewing! Glad the Heartless chapter was good enough to satisfy, despite his comprehension difficulties. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!

hybrid2: WOO! I love getting people struggling to not laugh! Glad that worked out like I was hoping it would. Mwa hah hah. Yep, you guessed right – giddy schoolgirl Cid was in response to a brand spankin' new warp gummi, so they can finally be on their way at a decent pace. Awesome show of attention to detail there. (applauds) And p-chan looks just like it does when you toss a pinion. In my case, I was staring at three bodies, my final party member (Quisty) having just gone splat, and saw that beautiful outline of fire race over the ground… so cheap, but so awesome! It's entirely in the luck of the roll, I guess. There'd been times when I desperately needed the Phoenix to show its ass up, and it refused. There was once where I already had Rin prepared to Revive the only person that was down, and Phoenix came and brought Zell back so her Revive went to utter waste. Bluh. Kinda like Gilgamesh using Zanzuken instead of that (content here is heavily censored. Stare at the evil pelvic-thrusting Ansem plushie in the place of the words that are being forcibly omitted) Excalipoor. Ack! Rambling done. Anyway, thanks for the review, glad you liked the Heartless chapter, and hope you liked this one!

Raz: (giggles) The 'squee' decoding skills on my end are rather intact and capable, but thanks for clarifying. By the way, you got me cackling like mad about the thought of our Heartless friend and fangirls and grabby hands. Awesome train of thought. Clarification to all that happened during the Heartless chapter will be forthcoming shortly. You think it's hard to comprehend what he's witnessing through reading it? The challenge comes in knowing what he's witnessing then attempting to 'not understand' it while typing it. Gr. But rehashing of the Heartless chapter in the following burble of pages to come will indeed clarify all. The Leon, Cloud and Hades encounter I pray will come off as entertaining as I thought it was to all of you. Thanks for reviewing! Your reviews are always such a pleasure to read.

Lady KeyBlade: Actually, you will hear more from Zexion soon. There's going to be another CoM tie-in chapter as soon as the two groups move past their next worlds – then it's only one massive world for each group to visit separately, then a conjoining venture. One final visit to the CoM guys and an epilogue will wrap it up – so do expect to see Zexion and Lexaeus twice more (and maybe four times, if they're feeling frisky enough to encourage me to write more smut).

OrenjiCloud: Hey, no need to apologize for reading everything at once! I'm rather honored that you took the time to do so, and felt that the story was worthwhile enough for you to expend the effort to review. Thank you so much for expressing your enjoyment of the writing style I'm utilizing in this story – while, as you said, it's not constructive criticism, it's still a comment and thus still something that encourages me to mash my fingers into bloody stumps on my keyboard to produce more. And so glad you liked the lemons! Heh heh. Hope you like the newest installment of the story!

Li the Twilight Knight: Heh! Another grand PMed review. Awesome. First off, you have my deepest sympathies about your game system woes. But at least with the PS3 out, if you're incapable of affording that the prices of PS2s should drop with that system being on the shelves, neh? 'Island of the Sky,' the movie mentioned by your Dad, I do recall actually being an old movie – but it's not one in my collection, so I'm not using it. I hope you recognized the movie I did choose! It's such a cult classic. And glad you so enjoyed the smut chapter! (happy grin) That was truly a lot of fun. And in reply to your question, I'm moving to South Carolina. Little town called Ladson, right out of Goose Creek. Going to go teach baby Nukes how to stand watch and not hurt the plant. Yay, no more Theodore Roosevelt! I hate CVN-71. Gaw. Oh, and gratz on the one year anniversary of your account! I wish I could have gotten anything out for it, but… well, with moving and trying to get everything closed out on my ship, my life's become a hellishly cluttered fiasco. Geh.

me-obviously: Thank you so much for the review! Pete's Dragon was a lot of fun. I wish they would have included it into the actual videogame, but… well… actually, I wish they would have included the movie I started to feature with this chapter as well. (grin) Glad to see someone else who remembers that classic movie! Thanks again for reviewing, and hope you like the rest of the story.

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Wee hah! New movie for Sora! Joy, joy. (takes a moment to groan in dismay) But I get to deal with Taran and Sora at the same time. I can see the 'sword envy' starting now. (as she breaks down into tears, the Ansem plushie saunters over to the 'Submit Review' feature and pats it lovingly before barking "SUBMIT!") 


	55. Departure

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 55  
The Ex-SOLDIER - Departure

To say I was at all focused on the mission that we were on, the journey we were attempting to finish and the task we were trying to accomplish would be like saying that King Mickey had breasts.

Yeah, my mind wasn't at all on the tasks we had laying ahead of us.

Rather, I was trying desperately to keep a merry bounce out of my step and maintain my normally calm, cool and collected stride as I walked at Leon's side, weaving our collective ways through the decimated hallways that remained for the most part intact in the building our hot tub was located in.

Apparently the damage we'd incurred on the area during our fight with that giant lion was fairly incredible – not only had that annoying satyr run by our location towards what was undoubtedly the lobby shouting that thanks to us there were going to be no more tournaments that would include the likes of us, Leon had informed me, much to my disbelief, that this was indeed the only building that remained standing.

Thank goodness for that – if my hot tub had been decimated, what had occurred naught but half an hour ago would never have had the opportunity to happen. That would have been… well, to put it simply, it would have been terrible.

After all, he was finally progressing, albeit slowly, out of the shell he'd locked himself into after Wonderland. He was beginning once more to show the true persona that he hid so expertly under his mask. And he was finally showing me what emotions swam under the gunmetal spans of his surprisingly warm eyes.

It was a hard battle to keep from smiling goofily. My mouth wanted nothing more than to profess that for the first time in too many years to count, I was truly, irrefutably happy.

Leon respected me.

Leon reciprocated what I felt towards him to me.

And nothing at all could possibly dull the feeling of glee at that realization that flowed through my veins. Nothing could demolish my cheer, as frightening and almost uncharacteristic as that joy was.

While I was certain that my good mood wouldn't last for eternity's span, that the one I still hunted would someday cross paths with me once more and my serene little fantasy world would come crumbling down with the flash of Masamune's steely length, I wouldn't let the inevitability of my merriment's destruction get me down. Sephiroth be damned – until my black reflection drew himself from the depths of memory and darkness, I was determined to enjoy what I had for the moment.

Returning to Hollow Bastion would certainly dull the glee, the constant reminders of my past associates and my childhood friend and the woman I'd lost once to Jenova's harbinger being present to push the tragedies of the past and the unavoidable terrors that I knew awaited me in my future back into my life. But until that moment, until that instant that we resumed our lives in that seemingly distant world, I would steadfastly drive any thoughts of him, of the Planet, of my dearest friend's fate upon the restoration of our home's Lifestream and the thought of losing her once again away from my mind.

Everyone has the right to be happy. I was bound and determine to abuse that right until I was no longer capable.

Reaching to the man at my side, I lightly brushed my fingers over the back of his leather-bound hand, being rewarded instantly with my searching digits being captured by his and gently squeezed. A sidelong glance caught his stern profile, a slight, almost invisible smile leaking across my lips as I noted the dusting of coloration that stained his cheeks.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! And just where do you think you're off to, mi amigo?"

I shuddered as my feet refused to move.

Just when I thought the world was perfect….

Pulled to a halt by my own stopped motion, Leon looked with curiosity over his shoulder. A slim brow arched over a blue-gray eye as he frowned.

As blue light flooded the corridor we'd been walking through, my shadow racing swiftly ahead of me, I felt the heat of Hades' fire bathing my back. Gritting my teeth so hard that they ground audibly, I turned and glared even as I released Leon's hand. "Where do you think, Hades?" I began with a hiss. "I'm leaving this rock."

"Oh, come on!" he began, his fanged teeth pressed together in a chipper grin, his eyes narrowed and vicious. "You aren't just thinking of skipping out on me now, are you?"

"I have no reason to stay," I snapped before turning sharply and marching away.

A cool chuckle bathed my back. "I beg to differ, Spike."

With a snap of his fingers, I felt pain flare down my back, pouring through my veins and pounding everywhere in my body. I cried out as I felt the flesh of my back burn as if on fire, the wing I'd been hiding stripped from its resting place in the blackest recesses of my heart and forced through bone and skin into reality with crackles of electricity and bursts of darkness.

Even as my knees hit the ground and I gasped for breath, my wing idly flapping once over my shoulder, I heard Hades' voice chuckle. "Oh, yes! That's right, isn't it? There's still the little issue of that contract that you owe me. Think you can leave so readily? Think again! I might've let your worthless chocobo-headed butt off this rock last time, but that was just thanks to your sad performance against my pet. I'd lost faith in you that time."

As I tore my gaze away from the ground I was kneeling on and glanced over my shoulder, my vision fogged and watery with pain, I groaned. "C'mon. What makes you think I'm any different?"

"Simple, my impudent little pet," Hades cackled. "You think I didn't see what you managed to pull off with that overstuffed lion that ridiculous midget satyr got his hands on? Come on! You just proved yourself to be the most useful pawn I've got! Even with Panic tethered to that critter, you managed to overcome. Heck, you just might have what it takes to get rid of that obnoxious little sunspot Hercules once and for all this time around! Good show with that test."

"Forget it," I groaned as I staggered to my feet, rather relieved to feel Leon's hands grip my shoulders and stabilize me.

"Forget it, forget it," Hades chuckled under his breath. Next second, he burst into wild blue flame that instantly simmered down. "YOU forget it, kiddo! Or do you need another potent reminder that you! Belong! To me! Me, the God of the Underworld. We have a deal, bucko!"

Arching a brow, I felt more than saw Leon's confused and concerned look upon me.

Hades turned his palm towards me, casually looking at his long, hooked nails. "One Sephiroth for one Hercules. You agreed, we shook, kabang, kaboom, kapow. Sealed with the wing and my good word. So like it or not, Cloudster, you're here until you deliver. No way I'm letting you go so easily this time around."

"Were there any terms to this 'contract' of yours?" Leon's voice quietly muttered.

Sighing, I ducked my head, glaring at my boots. "I have to kill Hercules in the tournaments."

"That's all?" the gunblader stressed.

"Right-o, buddy," Hades sneered. "And I have yet to see one annoying son of Zeus made into pasty bits in front of the arena audience. Hop to, Spiky!" With a wild bout of cackling, his blue flaming hair bobbing with the force of his laughter, he glared at me and held his hand to his side, pointing towards the corridors that would lead me back to the arena's ground floor.

Clearing his throat, Leon released my shoulders and stepped in front of me. "Sounds to me like your contract is void."

His cackling coming to an unnaturally abrupt halt, Hades' left eye ticked violently. "Come again? What are you talking about, 'void'? My contract isn't void. Blond unicorn here is mine until-"

"Until Hercules dies facing him in the tournaments," Leon interrupted.

A scowl marking my lips, I grabbed Leon's arm and tugged at it. "What the hell are you doing?"

I earned nothing more than a confident wink and the slightest hint of a smirk from the gunblader before he turned his attention back to the God of the Underworld. "As said, your contract is void. Since the conditions of it can't be met, Cloud's no longer tethered to your will."

"What, what is this?" Hades laughed nervously, wiping a large hand over his flaming head before he pointed a finger accusingly at Leon. "My contract isn't void. What kind of crap are you thinking of pulling here, scar-face?"

Crossing his arms, one brow arched and both eyes smug, Leon let a debonair smirk slide over his lips. "Come now. I'm willing to bet every last person on this world heard Philoctetes screaming that, thanks to what occurred, the Coliseum would never host us in a tournament again. If Cloud can't participate, Cloud can't face Hercules in the tournaments. And if Cloud can't face him, Cloud can't kill him."

Hades' finger drooped even as his mouth dropped open, his jaw slack and his eyes disbelieving. I suspect my expression exactly mirrored the God's.

Tilting his head, uncrossing his arms and cockily resting his weight on one leg, his hand on his hip and letting his free arm hand loose, Leon sneered. "Your words, Hades. Not mine. 'One annoying son of Zeus made into pasty bits in front of the arena audience.' That's a dream that can never be fulfilled now, thanks to our little spat with Griever. You've lost him due to the invalidation of your agreement."

I couldn't help but stare at Leon, my eyes wide.

Even as I did, I felt it.

The wing that had been plastered to my back, steeped in darkness and tethering me to Hades' will, had disintegrated.

"And it looks like the other Gods of Olympus agree with me," Leon said with a sage nod, his smirk almost feral with aggressive glee. "Your ties to Cloud are severed. He's free to go."

"WHAT!" Hades screamed, red fire erupting from his head and his shoulders, his hands swinging wildly to his sides. "This is IMPOSSIBLE!"

Rolling his eyes, Leon just held out his hand. "Shiva, if you would. A Blizzard spell, please."

Ice rolled off his hand, brushing over the flaming deity in a billowing cloud. His eyes blinking, Hades patted the top of his suddenly bare head. "What? My hair went out?"

It was then, highlighted by the fires that burned the walls of the passageway we inhabited, that I saw the little Shadow Heartless we were journeying with. Walking right past the God of the Underworld, I couldn't help but lend a small smile to Leon. "Thanks," I quietly muttered.

"No problem," he confided as he walked at my side, stopping once we stood before the Shadow and bending over to pat him on his head between his bobbling antennae.

"You can't just leave!" Hades' voice screamed from behind us, red fire burning through the corridor and heat bathing our backs.

Turning, I groaned and flipped him off. "Piss off," I tiredly sighed. "I have nothing to do for you any longer."

"Hey, fucktards!" a new voice shouted.

"Hey yourself, Cid," Leon grunted, raising his gaze even as I looked towards the direction that voice had come from.

Certainly enough, the cranky pilot was marching his way down the corridor I suspected the Heartless had meandered through and walking straight towards us. "Got all that stupid shit you were whining about finished up, Cloud?"

"Sure do," I said with a nod.

"Then finish up your playing around with ass-monkey behind you and get your sorry rear end to the _Highwind_. We need to start goin' one of these fucking days if we're going to get anywhere, considerin' that I wasn't able to find a fucking goddamned warp gummi on this worthless rock. Gonna take for-fucking-ever," he groused before lobbing my bangle at my head.

Whipping my arm out from under my cloak, I caught it easily and slid it into place. A quick check made me quirk a brow – Cid had taken the liberty of rearranging my materia in the short time he'd had my bangle, and had managed to capture something in my Enemy Skill.

Turning, I poured what magical energy I had through that orb. I tried to keep from snickering audibly as a white orb of light burst into being around Hades and dragged him off into the heavens.

"Takes care of that," I grunted with a nod.

"Then let's get going," Leon suggested with a nod, reaching over and giving my right shoulder a tender squeeze.

Ignoring Cid's scoff, I simply strode past the older man, my gait purposeful and strong as I made my way towards the gummi. Leon hefted the Heartless under his arm, carrying it like a sack of potatoes. Cid shook his head and trudged along after us.

Hercules and Phil looked at us, not saying a word and backing out of our ways as we entered the lobby. I granted Hercules a quick nod and Phil a glare as I marched out of the slightly cocked doors.

It was a quick walk to our gummi, Cid wrenching the door open with a grunt and a protesting squeal from the confectionary vessel. Without waiting for us, he marched inside and lobbed his shirt away into our laundry corner before muttering obscenities under his breath, rustling through all the objects the Heartless had brought back from the arena to put them away.

Walking in at Leon's side, I slyly slid my hand to his waist after he'd dropped the Heartless onto the gummi's deck. "You know, you didn't have to do that. With Hades," I quietly muttered to him, my voice soft to keep from drawing Cid's attention.

"Like I'm going to leave you here," Leon grunted softly. "Get real, Strife."

A slight smirk curling a corner of my lips, I shook my head. "Oh, right. Because leaving me behind isn't part of your master plan."

Shrugging, he snorted. "Believe what you want."

"So, how did you figure that out…? I mean, about Hades and myself, and…." I began, trailing off as I noted the incredulous look splaying itself across his face.

"Come on. I used to be involved with an elite mercenary organization. Contracts were my life – you don't think I know how to negotiate my way around one?" he grunted. "I'd think you'd be at least as capable as myself. You call yourself an ex-SOLDIER, don't you? From what the others say, they were comparable to SeeD."

My cheeks flushing, I shook my head. Yes, I'd told him that lie when we'd first met, but now….

When we'd first met, I'd felt more than a little intimidated by him. The SeeD from a different world, the man who'd lived in isolation surrounded with Heartless for years upon years before our Planet collapsed. The man Cid had pulled from a crumbling world when he'd been experimenting with his first gummi ships, the teenaged child with his gunblade that roared with the power and ferocity of a lion as he tore through his opponents. Compared to that, what was I?

With Cid and Yuffie and Aerith singing his praises, with them having told him of the adventures of AVALANCHE to rescue the Planet without divulging too much into personal details, I'd attempted to inflate the image he would have of me. The lie was familiar. It was comfortable.

And in some small, twisted respect, it could almost be considered true… Hojo had professed that I was, perhaps, the best clone of Sephiroth he'd created, even though at the moment of my inception he'd thought me such a failure he'd not even given me a number. If I was the best clone of the most perfect SOLDIER to ever exist, then one could come to the conclusion that in some way I might almost have been a SOLDIER myself.

Yeah, that's me trying to convince myself of something that was never reality. The real Cloud never made it. The ordinary Cloud before the Mako infusion had failed miserably.

But the Cloud that I am now, I'd like to think, could have done it if I'd wanted to; I just no longer had that desire… right?

My voice was almost nonexistent as I whispered, "That was a lie. See, the truth…."

I was interrupted by Cid's wild, merry scream of "Holy fuck! You did something useful, you little bit! Gaw damn! I would say I love ya to bits if it wasn't fallin' on nonexistent ears!"

"What the hell?" I said instead, looking around Leon to see the wily blond pilot dropping the Shadow flat on his face and tearing like mad into the engine room, a gummi held aloft and his step a surprisingly giddy bounce.

Leon's lips failed to hide his amusement. "Looks like he finally got the warp gummi he's been looking for. Then turning his eyes on me, he shrugged and lightly clasped my shoulder. "You can tell me the truth some other time, Cloud. For now, why don't we see if Cid will let us help getting this ship completely mobile again?"

Tilting my head, my flush going away, I sighed and nodded. "Sure thing. Not a bad idea."

Our combined step towards the engine room was stopped by the Heartless, his shuffled gait bringing him directly into our path. Holding aloft a pad of paper, he shook it almost desperately at Leon, perhaps indicating that he wished him to take it.

"You certainly have his trust, don't you?" I idly commented as Leon lifted the paper away from the Shadow.

With a casual shrug, he tilted the paper and looked at it critically. "Probably because we got the opportunity to speak face to face before Wonderland. He got to know me before… all of that."

Looking over his shoulder, I furrowed my brow. "I think he's trying to ask if we're going to get on our way."

"I'd concur," Leon almost haughtily said, taking the pencil the Heartless was still holding and adding a very rough sketch of Sora to it and an arrow showing our gummi flying towards him.

"You know, Leon, you've got to be one of the worst artists I've ever seen in my life," I idly commented as he handed the pad back to the Shadow and the little Heartless clutched the paper with near desperation to his chest. "Even the Shadow's got a steadier hand with a pencil."

With a snort he stomped past me.

"Oh, come off it," I groused as I followed him. "It's not like you can be perfect at everything."

"Cloud?"

"Yes?" I inquired.

"Shut up."

I couldn't help but let a slight smirk cross my lips as I walked after him, my cloak billowing lightly around my body as I stepped through the portal between the main chamber of the vessel and the engine room.

Unfortunately, we arrived to late to help. Cid was already wiping his hands off on an oily rag, his lips curled with a frighteningly bright grin. "Can you believe it?" he began. "The Shadowy son of a bitch got me a warp gummi! Now sure it ain't gonna have all the coordinates of my old one, but at least once we hit a place, from now on, we can just warp right back!"

"So we're still going to have to take the long road back to Hollow Bastion?" I groaned fitfully.

"Sure will, dumb ass," Cid gruffly bit, his giddiness being deflated by my less than enthused response.

"Well, we've got coordinates for our next destination, at least," Leon interrupted with a sigh. "It won't take us nine years to get there. And from what I've seen, I think it's actually quite close to Hollow Bastion's position. The axis positions look fairly familiar."

"Oh, looky here. The gunblade swingin' idjit's turnin' into a navigator," Cid huffed as he shoved a cigarette from a new pack most likely purchased from the Coliseum's vendors into his mouth.

A scowl turning Leon's lips, he almost lit Cid's nose on fire with the lighter he pulled from his impossibly tight pants' front right pocket.

As Cid began to curse his heritage, I smirked and left the dueling pair behind. "I'll go get that page you ripped out of the book in Wonderland's library. It shouldn't be hard to input coordinates."

"Like hell you are, Spiky!" Cid roared. "Who the fuck's the Captain here?"

I simply smirked as I paused. "You are, of course."

"That's fucking right," Cid snarled as he stomped past me, shoving me roughly aside before flopping down in his chair. "Now where's these coordinates of yours?"

It took Leon only a few moments of rummaging through the tattered remains of his clothing from Wonderland to procure the page in question.

With a few simple keystrokes and a push of the accelerator lever, we were off. The ship barreled effortlessly into hyperspace, the swirling cacophony of colors I'd not seen in so long swallowing our ship whole.

_-to be continued-_

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Ha! Anyone else notice that Cloud had no wing in KH2? True! I just replayed it yesterday to confirm it! Anyone want to wave the 'lack of continuity' stick at Disney and Square-Enix? Me! Definitely me! 

Yeah, the entire purpose behind coming to this world was basically getting Cloud set for KH2, lending my lame imagination towards why he changed so dramatically between the first and second installment of the game. Kind of like my explanation a few chapters ago of how Leon's jacket magically got its FF8 fur ruff.

Thanks, game designers, from the bottom of my black, raisin-sized heart. You make my head hurt.

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Review replies: 

cheeky doggie: Aw! Shucks, and here I thought I'd found a movie everyone would know. It was one a ton of people on a forum I used to be on were really praying would be in KH2. Damn it all. Anyway, glad you liked the Kingdom Hearts to Black Hole comparisons. I'm glad that toying with Sora's tormented little mind worked out. Thanks for reviewing, and hope that this chapter came out soon enough!

Lady Keyblade: Wha? Not one for smut chapters? (smirk) Well, glad the promise of up and coming CoM chapters is enough to please. And as for DID… it's the only way I could explain the horrific personality flop he went through. Blame the game designers for making me have to come up with that angle. (vigorous nod)

Raz: YES! Someone knows this movie other than myself! (dances around in glee) By the by, your merry little profession about the succession of witches did indeed get me to smack my forehead and groan helplessly. Your comments about 'handling' two little boys waving pointy things around also caused many cascading bouts of laughter in my house – there's far too many pedophile jokes running rampant between my boyfriend (one of my ex-coworkers who's recently out f the Navy) and myself thanks to my Xenosaga-phile self drooling over chaos and Rubedo at every damned chance I got down in my work center over six months of Med Cruise. Cripes. Anyway, the childish mental images are probably on par with the childish mental images I got when I sat down to watch 'The Black Cauldron' again and first pictured a Sora vs. Taran smackdown. Thanks so much for the compliments… and hey! Is FFXII worth it (besides the fact that the dub is apparently pissing you off with its nationalistic finger-pointing)? It kind of made me cringe to find out that some of the characters carry over from FF:TA – I think the ultimate flop that was FFX-2 (and Dirge of Cerberus – poor Vincent, all mangled beyond repair because of a suckage plotline and horrible game controls that made me drown myself in alcohol) scared me from anything that reuses characters I liked. Montblanc rules.

Hikari of the Moon: Ah hah! A movie you know of but haven't seen, eh? Meaning that the events of 'The Black Cauldron' will be a merry surprise. That makes me grin in sadistic glee, actually. Quite all right with being late with the review – I'm sorry I'm so late with the newest chapter! Moving is hell. Anyway, I'm very happy that the Sora chapter met with your expectations! Reading that in a review makes me gush with glee. And… well, hope you got the Leon, Cloud, Cid and Heartless answers and action you so subtly (cough cough) 'didn't' ask about. Tck. Merry waves from the Ansem plushie, and thanks for submitting!

me-obviously: Updated as soon as I could – I needed to unpack my computer, my cables, kill people from Comcast, et cetera. Anyway, you roused squeals of happiness from me. Another person who knows/remembers The Black Cauldron! I'm glad you like the inclusion of this movie… such a pity that so far as the KH game is concerned, all I can do is whine fitfully about wanting 'The Black Cauldron' in KH3, and pour my imagination onto a keyboard. Thank you so much for reviewing!

Li the Twilight Knight: First off, congratz on being able to hit the spiffy purplish button! (applause) And now to reply to your ever so welcomed and loved PMed review. Glad you enjoyed the Sora chapter and its new, terrifically underappreciated movie! It's a good one, trust me on that. And as for going back to VA… not so sure about that, actually. Looking at my next duty station possibly being Japan. (flush) Or heading to San Diego – that's a lot closer to home for me, being only 2 hours out of the Inland Empire. And a short distance from TJ. But I do digress. (smirk) 'Gratz on being caught up, too! And yeah, Phantom's not a bad movie – I still am completely in love with the musical (Michael Crawford is GOD as the Phantom), but… not bad. (grin) Thanks for the hugs, and hope you liked the newest chapter!

* * *

Mwe heh heh. I've gone completely bonkers from the fun-fun joy of moving. Please, someone, find the box I packed my brain in. I fear it's gone missing. (looks around for the Ansem plushie) I think I packed him, too. Crap! Just when I need his snappy shout of 'Submit.' 


	56. Return

(steps in from bashing the ever-livid crap out of ff. net) Teach you to give me errors when I'm trying to upload a document… gr. Sorry for the delay, people. Busy with work, busy with replaying video games, busy trying to beat God Mode on God of War (freaking impossible!) and busy mashing the crap out of a silly site that doesn't want me to upload a new chapter of BCD. For days on end. That's right – this chapter was ready a while ago, but ff. net didn't like me. Feh.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 56  
The SeeD Commander - Return

I leaned back in my chair with a hearty sigh, staring at the swirling cacophony of colors that slid by our gummi ship as it pummeled its way gracelessly through hyperspace, past multicolored asteroids and pieces of errant loose gummi blocks set free into the vast depths of space by their barricaded world's destruction. My eyes slowly drifted shut of their own accord, blocking out the maddening whirls of visual stimuli and inducting me into soft, isolated darkness.

Once again, we were on our way. While such a thought should have been elating, to me it was a nerve-wracking prospect.

When we'd set out on this little escapade, I'd been expecting a simple jaunt into the nether regions of the universe to find one Keyblade Master and deliver unto him one Shadow Heartless, ensuring the end of the Shadow's quest and hopefully preventing the destruction of said Heartless in turn. I'd finally get my opportunity to return the favor that Shadow had shown me so very long ago. He'd shown me the path out of the darkness that had encased me, pointing me towards the light I had been steadfastly denying the existence of since the arrival of that light in my life so many months ago. I was hoping that I was bringing him to his light, the Keyblade Master he was so dead set on encountering.

I'd not expected the convoluted lusts of fate that directed my journeys as a youth to return tenfold, apparently redirected to my head once again by my sudden spring into action after so many years of hiding in the shadows of mediocrity.

When I was an adolescent, a simple mission to assist the Timber Forest Owls in achieving independence for their tiny nation from the overbearing governing of Galbadia became a quest to save our lives, our world and existence as we knew it from the terrifying ministrations of a sorceress from the future.

Now, the self-imposed commission of bringing a Shadow Heartless to meet with the Keyblade Master was developing into a horrid bout of self-realization, self-destruction and journeys through madness best left untouched. We'd already encountered terrors I'd never dreamed of running across, and to be perfectly frank the experiences lent to me by Wonderland left me frightened of what the future had in store for me.

To make matters worse, the knowledge of where we were going was hammering on my heart and mind with so many emotions that I was feeling ill.

The others had no knowledge of the destination that rested in wait for us at the coordinates I'd pulled from that huge book in Wonderland's library. They had no expectations of what lay there.

Even if they did, it wouldn't have any impact on them – this place, this area, was an unknown to them.

The others were antsy as well, though decidedly not for the same reasons as myself. They had their own worries, their own shades and ghosts following them and haunting their minds.

Cid, I'm certain, was more than a little worried about his precious ship. He'd just finished repairing the _Highwind, _having been forced to travel though the hell that was Wonderland owing to the lacking capabilities of his vessel. We'd already been forced into two unintended destinations, multitudes of unwanted battles and burned through more of our provisions than any of us could have longed for. We'd packed the gummi with the intention of making a swift race through hyperspace, jumping with next to no effort from one destination to another, perhaps encountering a small gathering of Heartless gummi ships in our traversing from one point to the next. Cid had accounted for three persons, providing we actually found this Mr. Valentine that I was determined to find for Cloud, to survive onboard his ship for the length of what he'd assumed would be a short sojourn. With the troubles we'd had of late, his certainty in his foresight was shaken.

Cloud was still shaken by his experiences with Wonderland, those events he couldn't remember gnawing at his mind with insatiable foreboding. He had flickering shadows dance across his brain, soft inklings that things went terribly wrong, those feelings garnered by the initial reactions and tenuous handling he'd received from Cid and myself. What he recalled of Wonderland, what he'd revealed he remembered in the hot tub back in the Coliseum, was no easy batch of memories either. While he professed that he could easily forgive me my actions owing to the fact that in his mind I wasn't Leon and Wonderland had stripped me of my sanity, I could still see some caution residing along with the Mako that runs through his body shining in his eyes.

Myself? I was leery owing to my knowledge of where we were going.

I wasn't looking forward to the memories it would bring.

I wasn't looking forward to the reception we would receive.

After all, who was to know what exactly remained of the land that rested at the coordinates the tome I'd torn my page from? What monsters? What people? What structures?

I could only assume that the true focus of my train of thought rested still in the universe governed by light, remaining free of the grasp of the darkness the Heartless sank the rest of the planet into, if the book from Wonderland had coordinates to give me. I could only hope that instead of being devoured in its entirety, the planet upon which my intended landing site was located was shattered, part of it remaining viable for us to find.

Given how my infamous luck is, though, I fully expected us to roll out of hyperspace to find nothing more than a giant black spot where a planet once would have been.

Lifting my eyelids, I focused on my companions. They were staring vigilantly out of the windows of the gummi.

Of course, they'd be looking for enemy Heartless craft. After all, it was an encounter with them that lead to our painful search for the elusive warp gummi our Heartless friend had finally garnered for us at our last destination.

Stretching in my seat, I sighed and cracked my neck with a slightly muffled grunt. From his seat in the gunner's chair, Cloud turned and flashed me a slight smile.

"Rise and shine, Leon," he greeted.

"Hmph. Are we there yet?" I groused.

Cid huffed from the pilot's seat, drumming his fingers impatiently on his console. "Give it time, Leon. Gummi travel ain't instantaneous unless you're jumping between a couple of worlds you've visited before. Thought you knew that from all the damned times you and that waste of space Yuffie stole my fucking gummi and went high-tailing through the damned universe with it."

"We didn't steal your gummi to go high-tailing through the universe, Cid," I huffed. "We were going to the Coliseum to help Sora fine-tune his skills."

"You mean to mash his head in," Cid snickered.

"And why would I do that?" I snorted.

"Don't know. Maybe jealous that clown-shoes got the Keyblade instead of your ass?"

Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. "Hardly. Last thing I want to be responsible for is the fate of the universe." Been there, done that. Really don't want to go through it again. This time I don't have a sorceress at my side to wrench my ass out of time and return me to where I belong.

Cloud rose from his seat, approaching me and lightly laying a hand on my shoulder even as he bent to fetch a soda from the cooler behind my chair. "We've only been in the hyperspace tube for four hours. According to the computer, we've got another half an hour to go. At least the trip's been quiet."

"Get me one of those too, will you?" I responded.

"Get it yourself," Cloud snorted, pressing his soda against my forehead for a moment before walking back to his chair and popping the tab, his hips holding the barest hint of a sashay.

Ripping my eyes off his white boxers with their chubby yellow chocobos as he sat down, I grunted as I leaned over the armrest of my chair and dug through cold water for a soda.

Cid yawned verbosely as he turned back towards the front window of the gummi. "Good an' quiet out there. Just like I like it."

"Don't say that crap, Cid," I reprimanded. "State you like your current condition, and it's liable to change."

"Oh for crying out loud," Cloud sighed, his voice almost a simpering whimper.

"Let me guess," I dryly grunted. "Heartless?"

"Yep," Cloud muttered with a sad little nod of his head.

"Well, good thing you're in the gunner's chair. I can sit this one out."

"You lazy asshole," Cloud bit even as he firmly set himself in his chair, chugged as much of his drink as he could and strapped himself into place. After a hearty belch, he brought up his weapons panel and started selecting random cannons.

"You've gotta be shitting me," Cid snarled as he turned and glowered out of the window Cloud was seated next to.

Curiosity chewing fitfully at my senses, I couldn't help but join in the staring festival.

Even the Heartless plastered himself against the window, his huge yellow eyes pressed against the glass itself and his antennae limply laying down the back of his round head, curled tips scraping over his back.

A huge pirate ship with a skull for its bow was pressing its way through the colorful splash of hyperspace we were moving in, sails billowing heartily and wheels turning at its sides.

"Oh for the sake of all that's fucking holy," Cid bit, his teeth mashing fitfully into his latest cigarette's filter with unmatched fury, "why the hell can't these rotten whores let us get from one place to another in peace?"

"Because they're Heartless, Cid," I bluntly replied.

The Heartless looked at the pilot, one antennae rising, head tilted.

If I didn't know any better, I'd think he'd be casting Cid a sardonic look of 'duh' at that moment.

"Well, I've got guns ready," Cloud supplied from his seat, casting us all a harsh glare. "Let's get to this before they get their first shots off, alright? C'mon, Cid."

"Right, right," the pilot grumbled as he threw himself into his chair and rapidly buckled in.

Even as I fastened my seat's restraints, the gummi lurched into a terrifyingly rapid roll, barreling itself end over end towards the huge Heartless vessel that was flanking us.

The gummi's cannons roared to life, yellow rounds bursting into space and flying to our opponent, slamming with destructive force against gummi-crafted sides and blowing chunks of it away. A spray of blue lasers flew, incinerating all that dared to drift towards us.

That certainly got its attention.

From the multitudes of holes that lined the vessel, the barrels of cannons emerged. Hordes of ghostly Heartless flew from the worn craft, their giant fanged maws open in perpetual screams as they made their ways towards us.

Hyperspace was enveloped in a huge array of explosions, oranges and yellows bursting in giant sprays around and before us, our gummi shaking violently and our shields flaring to life.

"Oh holy hell!" Cid griped, his grip on the wheel of the gummi harsh and his knuckles turning white. With a wrench of the wheel, he sent us spiraling closer to our enemy. "Get the fucking cannons, Cloud!" he ordered.

As the Heartless splattered against the wall in mid-roll, Cloud acknowledged Cid's order and fired as rapidly as he could, keeping his aim as true as possible while the pilot wrenched his newly repaired vessel through the hyperspace tube we were attempting to traverse.

Parts of cannons flew, accompanying more chunks of the giant Heartless ship's sides. A ghost burst into pieces, slimy strings of its white essence drifting through space around us.

The ship returned fire, Cloud responding as quickly as he could with the _Highwind's _considerable plethora of cannons and lasers. Cannonballs were blasted out of space, lasers were intercepted by ghosts. Cannons exploded, ghosts blew to pieces, shields sputtered and finally flickered into death before our vessel shook violently.

"I've got damage control," I bit before Cid could manage to get a word out of his mouth. Tearing myself free of my safety harnesses, I scooped the battered little Shadow out of the corner he'd finally been wedged into by Cid's wild whirling he called piloting and carried him with me into the engine room, intending on keeping him out of my companions' ways.

When I opened the hatch, I coughed violently as smoke billowed out to meet me. Tossing the Shadow I carried through, I stepped in rapidly behind him and slammed the door behind me – best not to choke Cid and Cloud on whatever fumes were pouring out of our engines while they were trying to rescue us from our inopportune opponent.

Glaring at the smoldering heaps of equipment, I grabbed the nearest carbon dioxide canister I could locate and set it to good use.

As the Heartless attempted to make himself useful by wrestling a bucket of water from Cid's engine room deepsink, I finished extinguishing the mediocre fire that had burst into being. Nothing more than a tiny electrical fire caused by a pair of wires brushing one another without insulation to shield them from each other.

The ship rolled violently from side to side, flipping completely over time and time again. Gripping onto the machinery around me, I managed to keep myself relatively stable – the Heartless finally gave up on keeping his bucket, opting instead to hold onto my leg with desperation.

The engine whined piteously, a loud roar drowning out my thoughts and pounding in my ears as every thruster Cid had installed on his gummi fired. The sounds of explosions from the cannons ceased – apparently, we were making a run for it.

Struggling towards the hatch as the ship shook violently around us, I wrenched the door between engine room and cockpit open and hefted the Heartless back through. Without orders he flew right back to his chair, strapping himself into it and cowering.

"It's alright back there?" Cid asked, his eyes shining with terror and utmost concern as he turned his attention momentarily away from the rapidly passing flow of multicolored space outside of our front window.

"We'll live. Small fire," I responded. "As you can tell by the way the ship's handling, nothing serious."

"Nothing serious my ass," Cid growled. "Feel's like one of the thrusters' off. Pro'lly was the controller for it." A lamenting sigh burst from his lips. "Good damned thing your coordinates are close."

"So you couldn't take out the ship?" I questioned. "Felt like we were making a run for it."

"We're still running for it, fucktard," the pilot snapped. "You know, Leon, sometimes I worry about that brain of yours. Think we'd be going this speed if we weren't, especially with one thruster out? We're risking shaking the fucking gummi to pieces!"

Cloud huffed, sinking down in his seat. "We crippled it, but that's about it. Got a lot of cannons, took down a lot of ghosts and started on the bow, but when it opened its mouth and laughed at us…."

"A little creepy for my taste," Cid took over. "You think I'm sticking around something that's gonna laugh at my baby when we're hitting it with everything? Fuck that."

"Good call," I responded with a nod in the pilot's direction.

"Just pray the _Highwind_ holds together 'till we reach our destination. Otherwise, you'd better be ready to hold your breath for a long fucking time. Never tested the hypothesis that hyperspace's just like real space. Don't really wanna, either," Cid huffed.

That half hour that was originally projected was eased down to a simple fifteen minutes, as things went. It seemed to be the merest blink of an eye before Cid was cheering and slapping buttons all about his console, plopping the gummi out of hyperspace and dropping it into a simple sloping trajectory towards the world sited by the coordinates I'd received in Wonderland.

I stared at the world we were approaching.

In all of my time, I'd seen many foreboding sights. My longtime rival and friend standing alongside the sorceress I'd been instructed to assassinate, his gunblade pointed towards my face and murder burning in his jade eyes, all recognition of our associations in the past wiped clean and replaced with the desire only to see those SeeDs that would threaten his charge dead. Missiles racing towards Garden as I stood in Cid Kramer's office on the third floor, watching them race with eerie accuracy towards us even as we desperately tried to figure out the controls to maneuver our home out of their way. The floating prison of Sorceress Alda, her suspended form looming between planet and moon, her eyes cold and dark as she glowered hatefully at the people that had denied her the position of leadership she'd had in Esthar, that had denied her continued life amongst humanity, that had denied her existence itself. The massive congregation of monsters that roiled on the white of our moon's surface, their forms staining its pristine plains red as blood and their roars pouring through the tunnel crafted by the resonance of the Crystal Pillar with the moon itself and shaking the Estharian deserts. The huge structure that was the Sorceress' Memorial, its wires surrounding Rinoa's frail frame and threatening to take her away from me forever. The emptiness of the time compressed world, all civilization locked into barriers we couldn't penetrate, all humanity removed from its surface, all evidence that people existed at all being the sprawled bodies of dead SeeDs that were washed upon the beaches of our orphanage home on Centra. The monstrous hulking mass of Ultimecia's castle lumbering in the sky, held in place by giant chains tethering it to the earth by the lighthouse I'd grown up near, its black shape blotting out the sun and the sky, its horrible residents hissing and screaming their lamentations to the planet from within.

This sight ranked right up there with those top terrors that, despite the presences of Guardian Forces, would never allow themselves to be stripped from my mind.

Darkness billowed around the small chunk that remained of what once was a whole planet.

A simple range of mountains forking off to form a valley, surrounded by a few sparse miles of plains and scattered forests were covered by a thick layer of eternally laid snow. Barely visible in that mountain basin stood the now snow covered ruins of the structure I'd been intending to visit when I'd found the book in Wonderland and pondered if it would give me coordinates to it. A tiny town that I didn't remember ever seeing stood at the mouth of that basin, an effective, tiny guardian to the treasured remains of what once was the region's prized treasure.

From where we flew, even my own human eyes could see the roving monsters that trod over the snow and dove into forests, flying high above trees and circling above mountains. The quantities were huge, the monsters that I saw I recognized as being horribly powerful and the temperaments, given how they fell even upon one another and jealously guarded their territories, were likely to be more fierce than what I'd encountered when I'd come to this place last.

Of course the human life that possibly remained here would have established a new town – if there was no functioning generator in the ruins I sought to enter, they could in no way support the lives of those who would be trapped in this desolate land. And the monster population could be readily justified; they were trapped as those persons living here were, breeding their strongest and most vicious to survive with no moon in the sky to support them.

For everything living on the land we were approaching, there was no escape.

Above, there was no moon. There was no sun. There were no clouds. Only faint stars danced in a curtain of eternal darkness, their light glittering off crystalline snow and giving an eerie glow to the lands.

Around, there was no other land, no seas, no rivers, no oceans. Only a billowing cloud of black could be seen stretching into space. An excruciating distance away from the white land, floating upon the dark sea that encroached upon its snowy shores, the faint gray outline of a door imposed upon its black environment.

A door to the depths of darkness. The door to the end of all worlds.

The gummi was oddly silent. Everyone else was staring at the scene as I was, likely just as horrified by the sight I'd brought them to see through my coordinates.

"Holy shit," Cid softly whispered. "You're certain this is the place, Leon?"

"Yeah," I quietly confirmed.

Cloud cleared his throat, turning in his chair to face me. "You think these people've ever seen a gummi before, Leon?"

Shaking my head, I closed my eyes.

No, no one else had been this way. These people had been surviving on their own for years since the rest of the world was consumed by the Heartless, no one swinging through this decimated region of space to check for survivors. No light shined from these lands in the night sky; no heart powerful enough to shine in the heavens still existed, having been shattered so long ago – none would come to see if any remained at all.

"Then it'd probably be best if we landed away from that town," Cloud deduced. "Don't want to frighten the natives. Who knows how they'd react to a spaceship falling on their heads?"

"Yeah, true enough," Cid huffed. "By the looks of that town, they're pro'lly barely out of the fucking stone age."

Keeping silent, I contented myself with staring at the remains of a nation I once knew rather than arguing the truth with two individuals who had no knowledge of the lands they were blaspheming.

I was only slightly startled when the Heartless decided to climb into my lap, wanting to stare at the same sights I was perusing as Cid set the gummi onto the least monster infested snowy field he could find.

"Well, we've got a few miles to walk to reach that town," Cid gruffly informed us.

"Fine. Then let's get going," I sighed quietly.

I set the Shadow on the ground, a frown turning my lips even as I saw what might be constituted as concern swimming in the depths of his golden eyes. As he reached for my hand and gave it a gentle tug, I shook my head before walking slowly to the door.

After Cid opened the hatch to the outside and extended the ramp, I bravely stepped free of the gummi's safe confines.

For the first time in seven years, I set foot into the snows of Trabia.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

WAI! Time to bust out my save files and recall just exactly how the layout here is! Of course, artistic liberties are being taken, namely because there should be some civilization here where the world map has nothing but snowfields. I'll have happy (save not) explanations forthcoming for this deviation from the game. Huzzah!

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Review replies:

terracannon876: Thanks much for your compliment in your review! What can I say? I try to be thorough in my explanations, if nothing else. And I couldn't help but give Leon a ridiculous flaw. He's a Triple Triad Master, so that obviously can't be it. (struts in her Triple Triad awesomeness – guessy who just won the freaking Squall card from Xu in disk 4, even with Random, Same/Wall, Plus, Open, Element and Sudden Death rules in place? Hell yeah! Every last player card is MINE!) Ack. Babbled. Sorry! (grin) To clarify the timeline, though, since you asked – BCD takes place between KH1 and KH:CoM, seeing as how there's no determinate time between the two games – all that's shown at the beginning of KH:CoM is that Sora and gang are still on the path they're shown on at the end of KH1, and then stumble across Castle Oblivion through mystic means. Since the FF guys in CoM are the results of Sora's memories, they don't have any opportunity to show any changes that they've actually undergone. So who knows how much time actually passes, and what's happened during that time? So I'd like to humbly profess that it's not pseudo-AU, as I'm staying generally within the timeline of the KH series – the tie will be clarified by the end of the story, of course. End horrendously long blathering! (curtsies)

Kitty Kyinsky: Yep, really. No wings. He 'flew' like he 'flies' in Advent Children – just leaps into the air and goes bashing his happy sword against Sephiroth's. Then vanishes in a wanky gold light. Nope, Cloud never sprouts his wing. Played through 3 times now to verify that. (nod) Once on my 'proud mode' game, once on a shipmate's 'normal mode' game because he couldn't beat Sephiroth, and just played through this week because I was bored and wanted to show my new roomy the cut scenes. (grin) Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: Holy ye smokes, that's paying attention – reviewing before the alert? (insert swirly eyeballs) I'm honored! Anyway, glad you approved of the events in the last chapter. Sorry that it took so long, but… but… well, moving takes a little bit of time, you know? (sniff) Anyway! Thanks again for the review, and… I'll have to consider the offer of your Sephiroth plushie. (smirk) Good luck wrangling in your plushie-brigade, BTW.

scarlettHuntress: So sorry to hear about your problems with ff. net. Yeesh! Anyway, glad you're happy with the last chapter, and glad you remember why you love this fic. (grin) Hope you're pleased with the newest chapter!

Lady Keyblade: No, I haven't seen any of the videos… but you're making me lust to run to YouTube and check it out! Gaw, I can't wait for KH2:FM! (drools in anticipation) Personally, I think the entire wing-loss thing was the game designers going "FF7:AC is really awesome and a lot of people like it. Let's see if we can boost player numbers by having all the FF7 guys in their AC clothing and styles!" Or something like that. I don't think it was completely 'intentional'… or, actually, at all thought out. Feh. (looks left, looks right, runs to YouTube… because Zexy and Lexaeus need to be drooled over)

Manders1953: Wah hah! Someone else who noticed. BTW, I so hated Disney/Square-Enix for making Auron Hades' new little byotch. The grumpy ol' unsent should've stomped blue butt all over the Underworld. Feh. I'm glad you liked that chapter! It was actually pretty challenging to get it out. This world won't be too long – not nearly as terrible as Wonderland, to say the very least. It'll probably be the _next_ world that'll be rotten. For both Sora and the FF gang. Though Sora's will be terribly fun… and no worries about Vinny. He's just around the corner, in all actuality. (big ol' grin) Thanks for reviewing!

Raz: First and foremost, thank you so much for the review. Next up, I'm glad that I satiated your lust for Cloud/Leon interaction! Knowing that I'm pandering to an obsession makes me smile with giddiness. And thank you _so very much!_ Your compliment concerning my portrayal of Hades really, really means a lot to me. Characterization is one of my fanatic nit-picks and something that quite frequently gets me riled into a rifled tizzy. So, of course, hearing that I got the characterization of even a 'bit' character in a story is a comment that makes my heart sing and my brain dance in merriment. Carnage is certainly to come now that you know what world they're on, as will the undeniable wallowing through angst and anguish. It's just so fun! For me. If it's fun for them, then they've got more problems than they were landed with in Wonderland. Keh heh heh. Aaaanyway, I'll be explaining soon enough where Cloud gets his new, spiffy AC clothing from for KH2 in the confines of this story. No worries about that at all. Explanations are the number one reason (besides, of course, the proverbial 'what if?' while playing the game and letting my overly analytical mind chew Kingdom Hearts to itty bitty pieces) behind this fic. And wow, does FFXII sound a lot like FF:TA. I swear, while a wonderful game (and once you get a ninja like my Olgon, you simply CAN'T be stopped. That boy's freaking wonderful), wanders pointlessly about like mad. Complete a mission, find you're nowhere near another plot point in the story, shrug, complete five more missions. Then maybe get a tiny sliver of the story. Geh. _That_ aspect of TA drove me absolutely freaking mad, even though the fighting/leveling part of it was a blast. Hurray for Montblanc! And as for your lust for a dark-haired FF hero… first off, you got soda to swim in my sinuses with that 'stealing Seifer's rightful role' comment. Thanks. Secondly, I'd say check Cecil in FF6… he wears a helmet for the entire game, so he can be as brunet as you desire. Yeah, that was lame, but… but! Other than Squally-boy (and Sora, if you want to count his clown-shoe self in the FF-verse thanks to Square-Enix having part in the copulation that made the crack-baby known worldwide as Kingdom Hearts) we're rather up Poo-Creek without a paddle in that wanting.

Li the Twilight Knight: I'll sing the praises of your friend, too. So awesome that you're able to finally use the button without that firewall there to block you! Anyway, I got to see the new secret movie for the end of KH2:FM. So cool. (drool) Where the crew headed off to… heh. I just couldn't take them to Disney! It'll be so much more rotten to do what I've got planned. Neh heh heh. Anyway, thanks much for reviewing!

Melodious Flurry: (grin) Aw. I love it when I get random squees. Thanks for the attached plushies! (hordes) And thanks for reviewing as well – hope you enjoyed this latest chapter!

cheeky doggie: Thanks so much for all of your compliments in your last review. You made me blush fitfully. I'm glad it came off so well! Yeah, I've been intending all along to actually try and tie KH1 to KH2 via KH:CoM and a li'l fanfiction. There were so many inconsistencies just in character appearance that I felt it was necessary, after all (Cloud was the one who really bugged the crap out of me – Leon was more of a boggled 'What the heck? When did he get his FF8 jacket back? And why would he chop its sleeves off and put the patches he had on that short-sleeved number on it?') BTW, if you're still looking for that, it's a small blurb in the last Leon chapter – I think it was 'Tournament.' Anyway, glad you enjoyed the last chapter, and hope you liked this one! (I love Cid's POV chapters, too. They're a blast to type.)

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(triumphantly squeals as she draws the Ansem plushie free of its hiding place in her new home) Ha ha! (cuddles it as it snarks, pointing to the purple 'submit review' menu, "SUBMIT!!!") I missed him. Though, you know… replacing him with a Sephiroth plushie is tempting… (screams as she's pummeled by the demonic Ansem plushie for even daring to mention it) 


	57. Determination

Sorry, Cid fans. He'll be coming around soon, but this moment just wasn't very appropriate. Blame it on the music I've been listening to – I've got the 'sad writing mix' on so I can concentrate on Trabia, so Cid threw a greasy towel at my head and stormed off to buy some more cigarettes instead of allowing himself to be tossed into the angst fest.

And next chapter won't be a Sora chapter. Since the last Org chapter was 29, figured their next appearance should properly be 58. So next chapter will be developing the tie between KH1 and KH:CoM.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 (frocked at that) in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 57  
The Heartless - Determination

It was frightening.

The proximity of that hollow thump that consumed my dreams, the heart's echo that I knew existed in only one dark, remote place, was something I could verily taste in my shadowy makeup.

To be able to sense it, to feel it, to hear its cries for freedom from its prison and return to me, would mean that I would be inexplicably close to that land I had so desperately run from in order to find myself.

I had left my heart in darkness, fleeing from the binding black that held me captive and tethered to a fate of absolution, a fate of degradation until all that I could identify as my own humanity faded into nonexistence. I was trying to find a connection to my lacking heart in the land of light, my capacity to track it in darkness not granting me any ability to garner it for myself once more. I was seeking my personal light in order to free my ensnared heart from the confines of shadow that had absorbed it from what remnants remained of my frame, those remnants that now constitute my Shadow's frame.

To feel it, to hear its distant thunder, meant I was at the doorstep of Kingdom Hearts once more.

Within me, two distinct identities roiled, conflicted and embattled.

One rejoiced with my placement, gleeful that he was once again upon the doorstep of unending power. Control over the most devastating force the universe had to offer would be his – the Heartless would answer his beck and call, and in turn he would assist them in creating the absolution of Kingdom Hearts. He would revel in the touch of the black aura the Heartless' Kingdom had to offer him, bathing in its wisps. He would decimate any who would remain free of his Kingdom's touch, drawing all into uniformity and making the worlds whole and one.

The other was frightened, terrified with the knowledge that we were approaching the prison he'd so narrowly escaped from. He quaked, fearing the loss of all that he was – already his body had been destroyed by darkness, the essence of one more powerful than he having overtaken him and driven his frame into battle that he could not survive. Now he feared the loss of what little remained of him. The heart that beat in darkness. The heart I so fervently sought a way to return to myself.

I could identify with that second voice within me. While the first strutted and stood in the forefront, emboldened by the feeling of power flooding from the nearby door to Kingdom Hearts' blackened interior, the second remained curled as far in the recesses of my construct as it could, folded in his own darkness and hiding from the touch the first sought.

I couldn't be that first person… the more I reflected on it, the more I recalled of the clashing personalities I experienced in what I could recall of Wonderland, the more I was coming to realize that the fears and tremors that plagued the younger of the two could likely be my own. That the over-taker was still with me, still nesting in my mind – and still seeking the darkness I was steadfastly approaching with my companions.

Looking at my companions, I was slightly surprised to see that the trepidation that raced through my frame wasn't reflected in theirs. Rather, Cloud and Cid were staring out of the windows of the gummi ship with disgust on their faces rather than fright, speaking in bland tones to one another.

Leon, however, looked nearly as distraught as I felt.

Unlike me, though, he didn't look terrified. He looked sad.

Climbing into his lap, I looked out of the window at what he was perusing that would put such a desolate expression on his face.

Outside of our ship, I beheld what I feared I would see – the rumbling black that consumes the universe, the sorrowfully decimated remains of a majestic world encased in a shadowy ocean that would encroach upon its shores until it was completely swallowed. The faintest remains of a world's mighty heart, shattered and torn and oozing such pain that its light was almost completely enveloped in darkness, barely shone for my light-sensitive eyes. And not so far as I would like it to be lay the door to the world, faintly outlined in gray to offset it from the overwhelming black of the area.

We were at the End of the World.

The remains of the worlds that were taken, the dead cores that once shown with blinding light, floating in the ocean of darkness that swam with powerful Heartless who sought to strip anything that might dare remain and encase it within themselves, ushering it beyond the door that loomed so threateningly upon the makeshift horizon.

And this place that we had flown to was there, enveloped in that ocean, part of the Heartless' realm.

It was a world doomed to death, one perhaps even beyond the salvation promised by the Keyblade.

Then it clicked – the sorrow on Leon's face, the coordinates that came from the book he'd ravaged while Cid and I secretly watched from the opposing side of Wonderland's library, the condition of the sliver of land that we approached – we were descending on the remains of his home.

Leon was no native of the fortification I'd emerged from Kingdom Hearts' depths in. He may have adopted it as his home, but this small remnant of dead world was where he truly belonged.

As he placed me on the ground and began to approach the hatch of the gummi that would lead outside, I reached desperately for him.

I remembered the battle he'd fought against his own self-doubt to return from the smothering darkness the summoned creature he and his friends had fought under the fortification we'd started our journey from. He'd had so many fond memories of his home that he'd been willing to cast his life away to possibly return to it. Such lacking resolve to remain segregated from his home had nearly cost him his soul – only forceful words shared with myself in the blackness that was burying him had convinced him to struggle back to the land of light.

He looked down at me, his eyes filled with sorrow, before prying my hand off of him and stepping outside.

Cringing, my antennae laying down upon the back of my head, I slowly walked after him.

As certainly as my lacking memories and my clashing personalities frustrated and pained me, I was certain his ghosts and his recollections of his home pained him.

I couldn't begin to determine if he'd actually have the mental stamina to survive a trip through what little remained of his home.

Glancing back towards the gummi, I found myself longing once more to be in possession of my voice, to shout for Cloud to get his rear out of the ship and to Leon where he belonged. The spiky-haired blond seemed to have some comforting, relaxing affect on the brunet; if anything could help him through the trauma he was bound and determined to put himself through, it would be Cloud.

As Leon's arms gripped his biceps and he shivered violently, I slid to his side and lightly set my claws on his pants. After receiving a light pat on my head to acknowledge my presence, I turned my eyes up at him.

Seeing the faintest hint of a smile on his lips and the warmth of unshed tears buried in gray eyes, I nodded slowly.

No matter what, I would be there for him.

I wouldn't let anything befall any of them.

If Kingdom Hearts dared encroach any further upon these lands while I was here, I'd….

I don't know what I'd do, but I'd find a way to stop it.

I'd find a way.

_-to be continued-_

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Yes, that was blatant foreshadowing at the end. How'd you like that subtle brick between your eyeballs? Heh.

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Review replies:

cheeky doggie: Yeah, big troubles with ff. net. Grrr! Grrr, I say! Like grrkillit, my newest gummi on KH2, only with fewer cannons and more anger. And no saw blade. Wow, that was random… (scratches her head) Pro'lly due to the hellishly long work day. Anyway! I'm glad the Heartless ship battle had an impact on you. I was really trying with that scene – space battles are something I feel I'm quite weak on, so I really put out the effort. Hope it paid off well… and yeah, Trabia's from FF8. Marvelous place, it is! Mwa hah hah. Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing, and hope you like this latest chapter (even though it's so freaking short. Ansem plushie thrusts his pelvis mightily in your direction to celebrate the induction of yet another person to his ever growing fanclub.

Kitty Kyinsky: Actually, you didn't miss any references. I tried not to drop any real hints about where they were going. I'm glad I got a good response with that move! Now hush, you, at figuring out exactly where I was going with that little bit of descriptive text. Sheesh! Recognizing my tie-ins of FF8 to KH1. Yeesh. Thank you so very much for the hearty salutations in the direction of my efforts with this fic – I'm so very happy you're appreciative of them! Anyway, hope you like the newest chapter.

Lady Keyblade: … Zexion as a plushie…? (blinks blankly, then squeals and hops towards it before she's mashed into paste by Lexaeus' tomahawk) Urck… How's about the Roxas one instead? (shoves it through her monitor) Actually, 'bout the only plushies I can rightfully give away are Heartless plushies (with aquamarine eyes… or gold, if that's your fancy). Those I can actually sew. I'm still working manically on getting the Ansem plushie right in reality – the detail work is kicking my ass, what with the Heartless emblem and buttons and eyebrows and all.

OrenjiCloud: Hey, even if it's the same thing you write every time, the fact that you take the time to write it and submit your review truly makes my day! I'm glad you liked my descriptions of the Heartless – I do try so hard to make him as 'present' (re: nauseatingly cute at times) as possible. Thanks for reviewing!

Bethie Kimamoto: Here, here! New chapter! Breath! (waves desperately, then grins) Thanks so much for your very complimentary review. I'm glad that the CL action's well received (and if you want to read a decent kiss, hit up the 'extra' chapter 52.5 – the address to it's at the end of chapter 52, I think… or the beginning of 53. I don't rightly remember, as my brain is putty). Anyway, so glad to receive your review. Thanks much!

Melodious Flurry: IRVY!!!! (pounce) Still writing, as commanded. I want my plushie. (laughs) You're spoiling me! Anyway, thanks for reviewing, and thanks for yet another virtual plushie. I'm going to have to doodle these guys someday.

Li the Twilight Knight: Yep, that would be your snarky little Sephy plushie. (dry snort) Anyway… thanks for reviewing, first off! Secondly, yep! Trabia's all that's left of the world. Mwa hah hah. After all, Balamb's toast – it was swallowed completely back in chapter 10, as I recall, when Leon was dancing around in his memories. I heart the FF8 world. And Lunatic Pandora? Awesome music, fun place to kill humans and cyborgs, FRUSTRATING dream sequence that made me want to mash Laguna's face into a pulp, awesome music. The only thing I truly hated about the damned thing (other than the dream) was running through Esthar to catch it with a damned time limit on me. (groan) Wikipedia won't have much info about Trabia, I'm afraid… but you can at least find out about the fate of its Garden there! (happy nod)

scarlettHuntress: Hey, getting an 'I love your fic' review is quite enough for me. Thanks for submitting a review, and hope you still love it!

terracannon876: Of course it's (not) good for Squally to go back to his home world! Sheesh. What do you take him for? An angsting mentally troubled wimp? (cackle) Oh, and the book? That was from chapter 36. I didn't really give any hints as to where the coordinates would lead to until last chapter, though. Thanks for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: You know, I think the alert system's on the fritz again – if it weren't for me deciding 'you know, I'll check the stats page on ff. net and see what's going on, because I haven't gotten anything from ff. net in my inbox lately' I never would've seen a good portion of my reviews. Feh. Yeah, you're right in your assumptions – this is a sliver of Leon's world from FF8. The rest is toast, but hey! At least that's there! And you noticed my source of inspiration for my Heartless ship, eh? That was indeed the ship from KH2. I've been traumatized by that battle – my poor li'l custom gummi kept getting blown out of the sky on mission 3. Grr. Enough blathering from me… better wrap this up before I get caught up in the plushie war. (snags Ansem plushie) Time to exit, stage right! (jets in a cloud of dust) Oh, and fifty points if you recognize that cartoon reference. Heh.

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(rubs her head) Mmph… work schedule… video games… beer! Need beer. Motivation for new chapter comes in beer! And reviews, of course. (sheepish grin, even as the Ansem plushie struts and barks "SUBMIT!") 


	58. Whistling

First and foremost, many apologies for this taking so damned long to get out. Work has been eating the paltry remains of my brain that I managed to locate, demanding that I do these horrid things called 'qualify' and 'stand watch' and 'remember how a freaking nuclear reactor works' and 'teach moro… eh, students… how to stand watch just as supremely as your magnificence Wends can.' Ugh.

But I finished my initial quals. So, for a time, I have my brain back on loan from my newest command and can pour its efforts onto a keyboard once more. Huzzah!

Oh, and if you're wondering – information presented in this chapter comes from KH:CoM and KH2:FM+. Mwe heh heh. Though I'll admit one thing – keeping to the convoluted timeline and plot that has eight bajillion holes in it is a freaking task I don't envy anyone, especially myself. Gheh. Yeah, it's a blast trying to keep this as close to completely non-AU as possible. Stab me in the forehead with a spork and put me out of my misery, please. Or drown me in beer – then I'll be drunk, happy and writing fanfiction and won't give a rat's ass about continuity and fluidity between the KH series and stories.

Enough of my pointless rambling – on to the disclaimer!

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 58

The Flurry of Dancing Flames– Whistling

A happy whistle bounded down the hallway, refracting off tall white walls, long white tiles, overbearing white ceilings. A randomly placed white vase was heftily bombarded by manic musical tunes, its porcelain flowers glistening white and refusing to bend from their perfect, straight stance despite the outright attack. On and on the whistle bounded, stirring the placid air and seeking any ear that would listen to its flippancy. Soon enough it simply dissipated into nothingness, becoming nothing but white to match all the godforsaken white on top of white with a good bit of white on the side.

Wow, what a boring place.

I couldn't help but let my head sag as I studied this place that I'd rather hastily adopted as my newest home away from home.

When I'd first thought of the grand 'Castle Oblivion,' the place that was never supposed to exist, the place whose very nature should have caused it to curl in upon itself and slither away to the abysmal depths of nothingness that spawned it, I pictured something cool. Something foreboding. Something freaking awesome, rather like its exterior. Yeah, like the big fanged maw that was the forefront of the place! And those tall spires. Creepy. Awesomely so, in fact. Hell, the exterior's almost enough to send shivers down the backs of dusks. Know that – they confide in me every now and again, right before I morph them into something useful. Like my assassins.

Hell, we'd built it to create, to find, to whatever the hell it was given whoever you spoke to, another 'room' like the Room of Sleep that Xemnas always retreated to. To find his other friend. Now I don't have a freaking clue what all of that's about, but hey! Not my place to question. Just my place to do what I'm told, and do what I want while staying in those constraints. Sometimes. About the constraints part, that is.

Anyway. Castle Oblivion. Project, brain child, proud result of research and denial of the very fabric that constitutes 'reality.' A structure that should never possibly exist, existing yet not truly doing so, able to morph itself into entire worlds within the confines of simple, unassuming rooms with a flash of memory and a card to unlock the door.

Yeah, sounds cool, right?

Wrong.

The reality of the place was certain to bore me senseless. White on white on white, and did I mention white? Place was an interior designer's worst nightmare. White vases with white flowers on white pedestals standing on white tile and butted up against white walls under white ceilings with no windows to let anything in to offset the white.

Some nice flickering orange and red would spruce it up nicely.

However, that would be rather counterproductive. I wasn't here to rework the place, no matter how desperately it needed it.

Nah. I was there to see what all the hoolabaha was actually about. Work myself into it. See what I could accomplish with the weirdness that was stirring in the heart of the Organization itself.

Didn't have nothin' better to do.

And yeah, I'm lying about that. What of it?

A grin turned my lips as I hefted my head up and set my gaze once again on that annoyingly straight hallway I was making my way down. Now what the hell did it take to start this ball rolling in this place?

Of course, the arrival of the hero. Something none of us could control, but all of us were certain of. At least, I was certain of it. So was Marly.

And hence why I decided it might be best to show.

Now while Castle Oblivion was a might bit isolated from the rest of the World That Never Was all wrapped up warm and cozy-like in its dimensional pocket of 'how the hell does this thing continue to exist' it wasn't as if everything that was going on there was completely escaping the attentions of everyone back on the old home stomping grounds.

Marluxia and Larxene had already formed their merry little pact, speaking with a few of us other 'new guys' as I'm certain the stodgy old crones who slink around after Xemnas reminiscing about the good old days of being apprentices and whole and we'll find the way to return our hearts to ourselves and blahdy freaking blah call us. Now while Luxord had offered them a slightly sinister smirk and told them that doing what they were doing would seal their fates (and hoo boy, you don't want him to start on Fate, him being its Gambler and all. He'll talk your ear off, pick it up, dust it off, reattach it and go once again in an instant) and they'd been smart enough not to even bother with Saix who, frankly, was more Xemnas' second than Xigbar really was, I'd decided to treat them a bit differently. Yeah, Demyx had given them the 'gee, I don't know. Let me see if I can find three brain cells that haven't been zapped to smithereens by me playing music at excruciating volumes inches from my eardrums' response that we all expected from him. Poor kid wouldn't have a clue if it flew from Kingdom Hearts itself and landed on his sitar.

Me? Heh. I'm not one to close off all my options so quickly as my other supposed cohorts. Despite popular belief, I do have a brain under all of this absolutely lovely red hair of mine. And also contrary to the opinions of all of my cohorts, it's not focused on where the next target for a bit of bright and lovely fire could possibly be a full one hundred percent of my waking hours.

That's more like seventy, but rather beside the current point.

They approach me? I show interest. Hell, I play right in with them – yeah, Xemnas is full of crap. Constructing our own door to Kingdom Hearts by harnessing the power of the Heartless is bupkiss, taking far too long and wasting way too many resources. And even if we were to make that magic door to ultimate power and our long lost hearts, who's to say we'd even be able to open it? Our grand Superior's smoking a crack pipe and not making with the sharing.

I amaze even myself with my ability to agree with them so convincingly. I do believe they actually think I'm going to work in concert with them.

Once again, hence, why I'm here.

Gotta play the part, of course. Can't go making promises without carrying through with the play – the entire act falls apart if a guy doesn't participate in his own devising.

See, that's where Zexion's got it all wrong. He moves his people, then just sits back to watch them all dance to his tune. Makes him slow, unable to react with the suddenness required when the tune is manipulated right out of your composition and some other guy's got the notes dancing for him. Just plays with his pawns and his illusions, hiding his face behind his books and drinking tea.

The best players get right in there with the action, playing up everything they can.

Thing is that I can appreciate their point of view. No problem there. Xemnas' plan will take eternity and a day. Hell, it might not even work.

But I can't bring myself to sit idly by and let ol' Zexy take all the fun of moving pawns around on the board when they're playing around with the Keyblade Master.

Not that I'd ever met the kid before, nor that I really cared all that much about his individual persona per say. It's just that….

He's important.

And I can't just sit by and let eleven and twelve muck around with him.

Well, maybe I can a little. It'd be fun to see what he'd do when confronted with the twisted realities that lay in Castle Oblivion.

Xigbar was right to suspect those two. Larxene and Marluxia were just what the ol' gunner saw – up to absolutely no good. Not that any of us really are, but there're limits.

Sending dusks out to ravage the worlds? Yeah, not nice, but who cares?

Sending Heartless out to ravage the worlds so the Keyblade Master'll free the imprisoned hearts they carry and let those hearts get swept to Kingdom Hearts, building its door in our world? Not nice either, but part of the master scheme.

Thing is, being up to no good was being against the Organization.

And that's something even someone like me won't tolerate.

If it weren't for the Organization, I never would've met Roxas, you see. And I wasn't about to allow some newbie upstarts wreck what brought him to me. Especially not by using the one person who just might happen to be the most important thing to him imaginable.

Been awhile since I lost my heart. Been awhile since I felt anything, or even pretended to feel anything. But then one day a few months ago, we find young, blond and shrimpy wandering the World That Never Was. I swore my heart woke itself up in the darkness of wherever it was the Heartless stashed it and danced a jig that I could feel in my hollow shell.

He was one heck of a bitter little cuss, strong willed to no end and gung-ho for finding a way to his heart. Needless to say, he got inducted pretty quickly.

Then he and I hit it off pretty well.

Wasn't just that he was a cute little cuss with a fuse as short as Lexaeus' hair, all primed and ready to explode with the smallest little stimuli. Neither was it that caustic personality of his that made a guy laugh hysterically at all of his serious faces that featured pouting lips that practically begged to be fucked and squinty eyes that looked as malicious as a fuzzy kitten. Nah, wasn't anything noticeable, but him and me… we were a pair. We raised more hell together through the World That Never Was during our brief stint together that I swore that Xaldin would flay us into bits. Well, 'least he'd flay us into bits as soon as he managed to get the beads out of his braids and the dye out of his sideburns. Heh.

Then Roxas up and decides that he's gonna leave.

Roxas, among all of us, was damned special. The Key of Destiny. The chosen. He who could wield the Keyblade, bringer of ultimate destruction or salvation depending on the wants of the wielder.

But Roxas was smart – he began to ponder. Wasn't the Keyblade a weapon that chose the purest of hearts, whether good or wicked, to serve? Didn't it emanate from the heart itself? If so, how could a person wield a Keyblade if they didn't have a heart? If they were a Nobody, created by the theft of a heart from a person by a Heartless?

None of us had answers.

Roxas was damned set on finding them. It was almost like, since he started sending his brain down that stupid path, he was obsessed with learning why he was the one the Keyblade answered to. So he decided to take off – he determined that the Organization couldn't help him, that the World That Never Was would hold no answers.

He was leaving me.

Even though he risked drawing the ire of everyone in the Organization, he was leaving.

If I'd still had a heart, it would probably have broken at that moment in time.

Apparently everything that Roxas and I had shared, all the time we'd spent together, all the connection we felt even without our hearts there to guide us meant nothing in the face of his personal needs. Hell, they meant so little that he wouldn't indulge me and take me with him.

Didn't matter much, though. No way you can shake me.

Especially not when, just hours after he stomps his way out of my reach, I get the order to kill him.

Sheesh. Like I was going to do that. Feh.

I don't want to think about the weight of Xaldin's words when I astutely refused the wishes of the Organization and bluntly told them that nothing could move me to murder Roxas. Those threats were harsh; knowing Xaldin, those threats weren't empty, either.

A bit bummed out with the Organization and their mindset, I'd decided that I was going to track Roxas down. Keep him safe. Make sure the rest of my cohorts didn't find him lollygagging somewhere and induct him completely into nothingness.

I followed him a good distance – mostly without him noticing, too. Damned good job of sneaking, if I do say so myself! You try hiding in nooks and crannies when you're as tall as this guy here. And when your hair is so marvelously brightly colored.

Thing is, as I was following him and keeping my eyes open for my cohorts, I regularly got to thinking.

The Keyblade, the Key of Destiny. Interrelated and forever tethered together.

But there was another Keyblade Master. The true Keyblade Master. The boy of destiny, running amuck and smiting Heartless fiercely wherever he went.

There wasn't any way that an other and a Nobody can exist at the same time, was there? Even the thought of such a preposterous thing was enough to make a guy's head ache; bet'cha the stodgy old guys, especially Vexen, would love to get their hands on both Roxas and the errant Keyblade Master to run a few thousand experiments.

Roxas and this 'Sora' kid, both weilders of the Keyblade.

Sora.

The little kip mashing Heartless to kingdom come.

The guy Marluxia was planning on snatching away and putting up against Xemnas. The guy he was planning on sacrificing so he could gain control of the Organization and, with Larxene, use it to harness the dark power our stodgy elders had managed to contrive.

I couldn't exactly let that happen.

When I'd caught wind of what Marly was planning, when he and Larxene approached me and asked me if I'd like to join their ranks, I had to put my cautionary following of Roxas to a temporary halt. After all, he could in fact take care of himself – especially if the Org's devious little action-lusting twerps were going after the Keyblade Master himself instead of his Nobody shadow.

Couldn't let the punk meet that degrading of an end. No telling what would happen to a Nobody as special as Roxas if his other half bites the dust, you know?

And certainly couldn't let the issue of Marluxia and Larxene rest in the hands of the guys Xiggy sent to Castle Oblivion! Lexaeus and Zexy didn't stand a chance of figuring out what they were planning before time itself crawled to an end. Yeah they'd do it, but they weren't pressed to even put forth a facsimile of caring. And Vexen would be too busy humping test tubes to even notice that his lab had been transferred out of the World That Never Was.

Not that I really doubted numbers five and six that much – it's just that five seemed more preoccupied with six and all their freakish research about hearts and darkness, and six was too busy staring at the playing field and deciding where to put people to play with them directly.

Ah. Brain settling. An easy five minutes of reaffirmation of why I was here, why I was bothering to mix myself in with inner-Orgy feuding. What my real purpose was. Need to do that from time to time – sometimes the ol' head gets so cluttered it's easy to forget everything that's lead up to me being stranded in the ever so stagnate and marvelous halls of effervescent white. Oh, joy. More white. What I wouldn't give for a slight variation in the shadows that traverse the hallway, at the very least. A bit of another color, a new thing to look at.

Speaking of…

Looked like my landscape was changing. Quite a bit for the better, too.

The black-robed figure sighed and crossed his arms, his one visible eye peering at me with what I could actually discern to be bland disinterest. Tilting his head slightly, his silvery hair shining blue and damned near glittering in the odd light that continually fills the blasted white hallways without any apparent radiating source, he furrowed his brow slightly.

Ah, there! Between the locks of bangs. His other eye was staring at me blandly, too.

"At first I didn't want to trust my senses," his voice quietly began, his monotone vocalization exuding tired apathy in my direction. "There's no reason I should smell you in Castle Oblivion."

Pasting a wild smirk on my lips, I set my hands on my hips. "Oh come, Zexion. It's a free realm. We go wherever we wish."

"And your purpose here?" he asked without any true vigor. Hell, I could probably walk away from him and it wouldn't make any difference to him; Zexion would probably just shrug and continue shuffling about in his ambling fashion.

"Just checkin' out the new scenery. Heard that spinster witch is here, so I thought we'd get acquainted."

Was it my imagination, or did Zexy actually bristle at that? Oh ho! A reaction from the man of everlasting calm!

"Axel. Unexpected," another voice stated from behind me.

I froze the laughter that was about to burst from me, cajoled into being by the fact that I'd managed to actually coax a reaction from my stalwart comrade. No, not a good idea to burst into a giggle fit right now.

Instead of snickering I turned on my heel and granted a grin to the man who'd just appeared behind me. "Lexaeus. Should've expected you around. Wherever Zexy goes, he's got to have his shadow, hm?"

A sidelong glance at me was all the acknowledgement of my wayward greeting that I was granted before the huge man brushed past me and strode to the smaller Nobody's side.

"You're here because of Namine?"

I almost gasped in shock. Zexion the all-knowing, asking me a question?

Well, I had thrown a bit of bull out there for him to grab on. Sniffy little bugger probably caught the stench of lies.

"Heh. I'm here for the same reason you guys are," I said, inclining my head and glancing over my shoulder at the odd couple as I decided to walk down the hall away from them. "Now don't we all just wish what that reason is?"

Zexion pulled a hand free from the crossed-arm prison he'd had going on, using those extracted fingers to scratch at his pointy little chin even as Lexaeus cast his heavy gaze down on him.

"Just chew on that awhile. Goodness knows I am. Just tryin' to educate everyone here as to how little we actually know. Got that memorized?"

A slight snort leaked from Zexy's nose even as he let his arms fall loosely to his sides. "Lexaeus, let us find a more private hallway for our discussion."

"Oo la la, a private rendezvous. No need to hurry, Zexion," I crooned. "I was just about to leave. All this white's starting to get on me."

True to my word, I left my elders in the hallway, quickly making my way to its end and taking the stairs two at a time.

And, as I should have expected, I found myself screaming in disbelief after five flights of stairs.

The damned place never changed!

I was almost beginning to think that this place wasn't an area to build the Room of Awakening. Or summon it. Or find it. Or whatever! It was a place to kill the brains of anyone who can't stand looking at a single color for more that a day.

White white white white white….

My shoulders slumped.

Ah well. As long as I had Marly making trouble and Larxene willing to back him up in his quest to grab our friendly little number thirteen's other, I had a job to do. And damn it all, no crappy excuse for interior decoration was going to drive me away.

Fisting my hands, I set them firmly on my hips and resumed my march through the castle, whistling once more.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies:

me-obviously: Why, thank you much for your complimentary review! As for the condition of Leon's home world, it will, of course, be revealed in chapters to come. The Heartless is so easy to adore, neh? New chapter arrived (rings gong); hope you liked it!

cheeky doggie: Yeah, the lack of Cid made me bawl like a baby. Anyway, on to replying properly instead of just lamenting the lack of my favorite foul-mouthed pilot (except Matthews from Xenosaga, but I'm a whore for his boozer-self. Heh heh). Well, Trabia being a part of the End of the World… it just seemed so appropriate, you know? And I'm glad you enjoyed my continuing fleshing out of the Heartless and what's going on in his wee bobbling head. Per gummies… grrkillit's the only one I like. I dismantled the rest and sacrificed gummis to it to make it kick butt. It even has microgrr-left and microgrr-right these days. (cackles) However, the gummi system in KH1 is the one I prefer… kinda sick, yes? I had the _Highwind_ so completely cracked out it was unrecognizable. (sick grin) I hear you on those freaking alerts. Wish I could physically beat ff. net with a mallet, instead of virtually threatening it. (snatches her beer and chugs) Mm! Thanks for the inspiration! Look at the chapter it produced. Hope you enjoyed it.

Li the Twilight Knight: Holy smokes… it _has_ been over a year since I started this silly thing, hasn't it? (boggled) Sheesh! Anyway, hope you enjoyed this special Org chapter. I love them to pieces. And… well, seeing as how the beginning of the End of the World is all those little pillars floating in a sea of purplish darkness with powerful Heartless mucking about, I just felt compelled to put Trabia there – it just hasn't completely dissolved into one of those marvelous landmarks yet. As to where the heck it was during KH1… you're gonna have to wait to see what's going to happen. Mwa hah hah. My excuses are infallible (moreso than my plots). As for what's going to happen to our favorite Shadow… you'll just have to wait and see! Mwa hah hah! (choke, gag, die) Ooo, Kadaj! My favorite neurotic Sephy clone! (glomps, hides in her den and cuddles the stuffing out of him) Thanks for the virtual plushie and the review!

OrenjiCloud: Aw, I made it detrimentally heart wrenching, eh? (sadistic grin) Why, thank you! I'm glad it came off well. Thanks so much for reviewing, and hope this chapter came out quickly enough for you – my work schedule makes it tough to pry my brain out of its storage box and concentrate on these things. Feh.

Lady Keyblade: Glad you like your newest virt plushie, then! Have fun collecting them all. (grin)

Kitty Kyinsky: Well… 'least I know my description was good, then, considering how quickly you caught on. (grin) And to answer your suspicions about whether or not I'm going to stick with the plots of the games… (curtsies) I'm doing my best. But when there are so many plot holes that it looks more like mesh than fabric, it's a tad difficult. (sweatdrop) Thanks for reviewing! And if you feel you must divulge in spoilers, do as you like. I don't mind – it's just surprising that it was so easily picked up. (queasy grin) Damn, my cliffy plot twist went splato.

Riraku-san: Holy… wowzers! All overnight? That's dedication. Well, first off, thanks much for commenting on the smut scene. That was a blast to type, and I'm glad it came off well. And your welcome for the answer to that riddle, too. (grin) Oh! And hope my message to you about your FF8 game helped. (smiles, curtsies) Didn't want to type a half page of game information here – I'm trying to break that habit. (sweatdrop)

hybrid2: Well, glad you had the opportunity to catch up with the story. And thanks much for critiquing my efforts with Sora. Much appreciated! And… eh heh… I'm glad you're enjoying the Shadow, though it obviously wasn't my intention to make him more likable than Riku's characterization. Eh… heh heh. And I'm very happy you're liking Cid! I've always adored Cid. But I've always been partial to saucy old cusses who drive bastardized ships (takes a moment to drool over Xenosaga's Matthews… again). As for the dynamics between Leon and ye auld Shadow… you'll just have to wait, neh? Mwe heh heh. Thanks for reviewing!

Hikari of the Moon: Hey, no need to apologize for the late review. Reviews, whether timely or late, are always appreciated! If anything, I should be apologizing for the late update! (bonks head with her laptop) Ungh. Anyway, hope the Org chapter met with your expectations. I heart tie-in chapters. Kind of like I heart work. They make me think, damn it all. (whine) As for the cartoons that'll be happening later… you'll have to wait. Meh. The Ansem plushie sends his favors (in the form of perverse pelvic thrusts) to you for submitting. (curtsies)

terracannon876: Congratz on finally getting to see Eden! Huzzah! And yeah, it'd been awhile since we played with the Org, neh? Anyway, thanks much for reviewing! (flush) And forgive me for the incredibly late update.

scarlettHuntress: Heh. Even not-proper-reviews are greatly appreciated and happily smiled at. Glad you liked the last chapter, and hope you liked this one as well.

hybrid2: Actually, I used to have Return to Oz. That movie… it wasn't frightening, really. It just… ungh. I actually can't watch it again. (ralf) But I do have movies picked out – I also am fairly damned certain that they'll be movies everyone will recognize! After all, once I'm done with Black Cauldron and FF8, there's only one movie left for each group. (struts) Getting towards the end one of these days! Huzzah!

star: Thank you so much for reviewing! I'm glad you're enjoying the fic, and do hope you like the newest installment. (huggles for another Squallers fan)

Katmilla: Wow! Thanks much for all of your reviews, first off (and glad that my mention of being in the Navy got you to laugh your arse off). Secondly, thanks also for your critique of my characterization of Sora! I'm glad you enjoyed my battle scenes (and that they flowed nicely – that's sometimes quite a challenge to pull off, so I'm glad my efforts were well received). And while I do whimper fitfully for my lack of Ellone (I also wish I could have included her, but the chapter was already too damned long), I also cheer at the fact that you got most've the quotes in that mind-numbing chapter 41. And no, your river of reviews didn't annoy me at all – they encourage me to keep going and finish this story up. (nod) Oh, and I want to see your picture of the Heartless washing dishes. (smirk)

Anonymous: Congratulations, oh lovely flamer! You're my first one in 58 chapters and 300 reviews! I might humbly ask that next time, though, you leave an identifier. Anyway, many apologies that you found my little story boring and don't seem to believe that it will ever end. It actually does have a set ending that's… well, close enough. Comparing me to Robert Jordan? Wow! I'm being compared to a great author! So sorry that you don't have the patience to deal with his works. I might also recommend you stay away from Issac Asimov, JRR Tolkein, Melanie Rawn and Piers Anthony. The overwhelming complexities and overall size of their works will probably bore you to tears.

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Holy smokes, the review replies are getting long…

(happy dance)

THANKS!

(wipes her brow) Yes, it was yet another KH:CoM reference chapter. So those of you who were lost? Yeah, don't worry about it - I was just trying to reiterate that this does indeed take place in the games' timeline and isn't really that AU. Those of you who weren't lost? Let's all dance collectively for the lost Organization guys that got only rotten, badly translated and misspelled journal entries in KH2! (parades around with her 'Respect KH:CoM Org guys! They're not emo bitches!' banner) My brain died thanks to the research that went into this… and the next chapter's a SORA CHAPTER!

Crap.

That means… Ghurgi. And Teran. (gags, dies)

Oh, and by the way... (throws her Ansem plushie at the monitor where he rabidly drools and snarls out 'SUBMIT!')


	59. Meetings

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Cauldron. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

Sora's chapters will probably be a little hefty for awhile – there's a lot of material to cover for this movie, and unfortunately not that many chapters dedicated to his side of the story for it. I plan on 2-3 more chapters max in this movie, so a whole lot of ground's got to get done with. This'll be the last of the short Sora chapters for a time – I know some of you are cringing, but hang in there! It'll come to an end before you know it. Hopefully. :P

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 59

The Keyblade Master – Meetings

"Hm. Doesn't seem very occupied," I quietly observed, casting my gaze around the dusty and most decidedly empty cabin my friends and I had discovered.

"Gawrsh, you think that Taran and Hen Wen met with some trouble, Sora?" Goofy inquired, his footsteps echoing with resonant thumps as he crossed the cabin's single room to stand at my side.

Donald shook his head back and forth. "Who knows? With the Heartless around and this 'Horned King' up to no good," he began.

"Probably," I completed for the duck, my head hanging. "Look at all the trouble we had here."

Indeed, our short sojourn to the cabin at the edge of the Forbidden Forest as Dallben had dubbed the conglomeration of twisted, sickly trees that stretched so sickeningly close to his pristine little farm had been rather adventuresome. More than once we'd heard the shrieking of some winged creatures as they flew overhead, their forms when we'd garnered glimpses of their rapidly sailing bodies almost reminiscent of Wyvern Heartless; rather than reddish in color, though, they were a dark dusky purple – their features weren't as soft as the Heartless either, but rather stiff and hard, angular and deadly like the dragons I'd always read about in fantasy novels. And accompanying those terrifying trills that echoed across the lands were small gatherings of roving Heartless, their presences called by the flying beasts and the light of our hearts.

Now granted the Heartless we'd encountered were nothing Donald, Goofy and I would ever have any problems with. A few overpowered Shadows, Soldiers, Darkballs, Black Mushrooms and the occasional Wizard weren't anything that would frighten me or call any doubt to my mind about our abilities to handle the situation. With Donald's magic, Goofy's physical might and my Keyblade to slice my way through the hordes (and cast the occasional Curaga when it was needed), the minute obstacles that crawled out of darkness to confront us didn't stand a chance.

But just because they weren't a challenge for us didn't mean that they weren't an incredible danger for anyone else. We had power, experience and the Keyblade on our side. Without those advantages, even Shadows were a very real, very terrible danger for anyone else.

With that knowledge, we'd hurried to the cottage in question, following old Dallben's directions exactly.

"Maybe we just beat them here?" Donald lamely suggested, looking with wide, doubtful blue eyes at me along the length of his bill.

I sighed and shook my head. "This 'Taran' kid was Dallben's assistant, right? He'd know right where this place is, I'm suspecting. So either he got side tracked, or…."

Goofy flopped a gloved hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "I'm sure he didn't get taken by the Heartless, Sora. They probably got lost."

"Lost? But how? Like I just said, he'd know where this place is," I retorted.

"Or they got delayed," Donald again said. "I think we should check the woods."

"You're kidding, right?" I muttered, looking down at the duck. "That place looks ultra creepy."

"Yeah, but it's the first place I'd run if I were being attacked by Heartless, and I couldn't attack them back," Donald snapped. "Think about how you reacted when they first came to your island. You may not remember, but I do. You whined about how you couldn't hit anything with your wooden sword for hours in the gummi."

"Hush," I huffed, crossing my arms. "I did not whine!"

"You did so!"

"Did not!"

"Um, guys," Goofy interrupted, waving a huge white-gloved hand between us and snapping us out of our glaring contest. "Ya know, I'm thinkin' that Donald has a pretty good idea. Why don't we just go give the forest a look through?"

Sighing, I bowed my head. Outvoted. "Fine, fine," I breathed. "Let's give it a go."

It wasn't but an hour later that Donald was veritably dancing with glee, pointing with Save the Queen to a pathway that had obviously been recently forced into being through tangled bramble and brush.

Scratching my chin, I stuck my head between twisted and gnarled branches, studying the sap that had barely begun to congeal and seal the open wounds created by the rough passage of a body approximately my own size. Turning my head, I gazed along a very straightforward path heading right to a tumbled trail of boulders.

"Who was right?" Donald's gravelly voice brightly and triumphantly professed.

With a slump of my shoulders, I was forced to concede defeat.

"Huh," Goofy began, stepping in right behind me and ducking his head as to not knock his hat straight off his skull, "whoever went through here was probably in a hurry. Otherwise you'd think they'd take more care." Poking at a branch with a gloved fingertip, he drew it back with a yelp when it snarled in the fabric that covered his hand and stabbed at the flesh it contained.

"Quit fooling around with it, Goofy," Donald reprimanded as he strode fearlessly along the impromptu path the person who'd traversed the area before us had left in their wake. "Let's see who's at the other end!"

With a thick chuckle, Goofy nodded and followed the intrepid duck, leaving me to bring up the rear. Tightening my grip on Ultima Weapon, the Keyblade having never left my hand since our first attack that had occurred after leaving Dallben's house, I slung the weapon over my shoulder and strode after them.

It wasn't long until we came to a crumbling mountain of stone, atop which sat a lonely, miserable dog-like creature, its tan fur and white mop of hair atop its fuzzy head shining in stark contrast to the miserably gray stone and foreboding dark sky with its streaks of purple lightning. Looking cautiously at Donald and Goofy as they waited for me to catch up, I quietly breathed, "What do you think it is?"

"Doesn't look very threatening," Goofy responded. "Maybe it knows where Taran and Hen Wen are!"

"Might as well ask," I said with a shrug, adjusting my grip on Ultima Weapon and striding forward.

Stopping a few feet behind the curious creature, I cleared my throat. "How's it going?"

The beast jumped with a gargled yelp, an apple all but flying from its fuzzy brown four-fingered hands. Huge brown feet peddling in the air before it hit the ground again, it comically spun towards me with a second hop and stared at me with huge blue eyes, its black nose over a fuzzy brown mustache twitching nervously. The creature's brown face riddled with fright, its jaw opened a touch, two sharply pointed bottom teeth jutting up into view as its floppy little ears perked up.

Suppressing a bout of laughter, I bent slightly at the waist and offered it a wide grin. "Hey, no reason to be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you."

Needless to say, I was more than a little shocked when the creature spoke, its voice garbled and course but decidedly masculine despite its oddity.

"Oh, poor miserable Gurgi has no way of knowing! Scary tall men with glittering swords sneaking up on him, with him so close to that terrible place. Just after great lord goes into evil castle!"

Raising my gaze, I stared at the 'evil castle' the beast chattered about. The very sight nearly took my breath away.

Rings of sharply pointed mountains encased a dire landscape devoid of life, an empty mouth of fangs eternally screaming at the black sky above. Looming from impenetrable fog atop a squat lump of harsh stone bearing no vegetation, the only structure in the valley before me thrust tall towers and gnarled walls towards the dark sky. Flames flickered along its sides, shining from tiny windows like the eyes of monsters peering from shadows. Jagged spires chewed at the heavens like ravenous pitted teeth. A winding, desolate path rose from the foggy sea that surrounded the black castle whose darkness set it discernibly apart from the rest of the desolate environment, snaking its way lazily to the giant maw that was its entrance.

As lightening streaked down its sides and the screams of those wyvern creatures we'd caught glimpses of echoed through the darkness, I shuddered violently. It was a black castle out of the deepest of nightmares, crawling with foreboding, fear radiating from it like a living entity.

With such a sight before a small creature such as the tan dog-thing at my feet, I couldn't blame him for being jumpy and afraid.

Straightening my stance, I sighed and calmly sent the Keyblade away. "Look, it's gone now. I'm not going to hurt you."

He gasped, staring at my empty hand. Immediately jumping onto my chest, one of his hands curled into my jacket to maintain his position, he grabbed the hand that had been holding Ultima Weapon and brought it to his nose to sniff it. "Now where did it go? Gurgi's friend hide apple in vest, but whole sword? Where is it, where is it?"

Shuddering, I tried to resist the urge to push the creature off of me. "Look, look! Whoever you are-"

"I think he said his name's Gurgi, Sora," Goofy helpfully provided from the sidelines, waving from a hysterically laughing Donald's side.

"Right. Gurgi! Just… the Keyblade's gone, alright? Get off!"

Looking at me, the beast slid off of my body and stood at my feet. "Very strange, very magic sword! Gurgi's friend could use help from a lord with a magic sword."

Holding my head, I sighed. "Look, I'm not a lord, and it's not really a magic sword. My name's Sora, and it's a Keyblade."

"Sora?" Gurgi questioned, tilting his head a little, the white mop of fur that resembled hair cascading over one little ear.

"Yes, Sora. Now, what was that about your friend needing help?"

Gesturing wildly, Gurgi jumped up and down and waved his arms. "Gurgi's friend needs help! Great lord go into evil castle. Evil castle is place of terrible King, crawls with bad men and bad shadows. Gurgi not go in there, beg friend not go there. But friend chase piggy, go anyway."

Goofy thumped a balled fist into the palm of his other hand. "Gawrsh! Bet'cha that was Taran and Hen Wen!"

"Yeah!" I readily agreed, staring at the castle with newfound determination. "How many other boys and pigs could be traveling in this area? Must be."

Donald finally pried himself off the ground, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes.

"Glad you got a good laugh," I huffed loudly. "At least you won't be cackling uncontrollably and drawing everyone to us when we get in there."

"Oh no! Sora and friends not going in there too!" Gurgi whined, grappling my leg like a lifeline.

Sighing, I looked down at the fuzzy anchor that held me in place. "Look, Gurgi. Dallben, Taran's master, is worried about him. We were going to make certain he was safe. And Hen Wen apparently knows where some cauldron is."

"Cauldron?" Gurgi echoed.

"Yeah. And the guy that's seeking that cauldron is drawing those… bad shadows as you called them. He's making them come here so he can get it. So if we get it and destroy it, the bad shadows will leave him – he won't have a bargaining chip to keep them here and loyal to him anymore," I tried to explain.

Gurgi tilted his head, his eyes showing nothing but confusion.

Rolling my eyes to the heavens, I tried to take a step towards the structure that loomed in the distance. "Look, we've got to talk to Taran and Hen Wen to find out where the cauldron is. End of story. So we've got to go rescue them."

I groaned as Gurgi refused to let go. "No, no, no!" his gravelly voice whimpered. "Come first! Get good crunchings and munchings before going to evil, terrible castle?"

"Eh…."

"Come first! Come first!" Gurgi insisted, letting go of my leg and instead grabbing hold of my hand and bounding down the path I'd just followed to reach the precipice upon which I'd been standing to stare at the dark castle in its valley of death.

"Gurgi! Let go!" I cried out as I stumbled after him, my balance completely ruined by the rough quality of the road he was easily navigating. The only relief I felt at the moment came from the sounds of Goofy and Donald's feet following close behind.

As the rocks gave way to bramble and the bramble gave way to thick, pleasant woods with emerald grass and a gently flowing stream, Gurgi looked wildly from left to right. Dragging me errantly around, he sniffed wildly at the brush and stared in random directions before deciding on a direction and bolting wildly along a path only he could see. Then, without any provocation or warning, he suddenly released me.

"Oooooh," Gurgi's voice breathed in awe.

Rubbing my hand ruefully, I glared down at the tan beast. "What now?" I breathed in frustration.

Gurgi was no longer at my side.

Rather, he had jumped onto the back of an elderly man I'd failed to notice before, attempting to rip his hat from his head. The poor man who was the beast's target rolled around on the ground, his tattered brown pants, light brown vest and tan short-sleeved shirt getting covered in grass stains and leave debris. Kicking wildly with brown shoes and wrapping himself in his red cape, he was struggling vainly to keep his tan hat with its flamboyant pink feather affixed to his head. Lifting his white-haired head, granting a glimpse of a golden harp that hung on a string around his neck and the golden clasp that held that red cape with its purple interior coloration in place, he cried out in panic, his big bushy gray eyebrows screwed over tightly shut eyes. "Help! Murder!"

I slapped my forehead as Gurgi climbed all over the poor unfortunately, scooting under his cloak and wrapping his arms around his neck. "Hurry!" the beast's victim cried helplessly, huge black eyes staring with panic.

Laughing, Gurgi wrapped his arms around the man's neck and professed, "Gurgi's lucky day."

"Get this thing off of me!" the elderly man screamed.

Stepping out of the woods, I huffed and put my hands on my hips, even as Gurgi snatched the gentleman's cap and put it on his head with a breath of "Wow."

"Gurgi!" I attempted to reprimand.

"Yes, keep it!" the man under the fuzzy creature whined. "It's a gift!"

Then Gurgi grappled with the man's golden harp. "Want this. Gurgi want this."

"Gurgi!" I shouted, stomping forward, intent on ripping the wild creature from his victim.

"Go ahead!" the caped man whimpered. "I'm sure you've murdered for less!"

I groaned in dismay as Gurgi began to drag the unfortunate gentleman around by the harp, crying, "Want. Want. Gurgi want!"

Just as I'd finally reached Gurgi and was wrapping my hand in the fur at the scruff of his neck, another person burst onto the scene.

About as tall as I and probably about my age, he sported reddish brown shortly cropped hair and brown eyes. A yellow long-sleeved shirt covered with a tan vest was cinched around his middle with a belt that also served to hold up his olive pants that jutted out of brown, simple boots.

He also had a long sword's sheath hanging off that belt.

My eyes instantly narrowed. He had that sword partially drawn, harsh fury written across his face. Ultima Weapon instantly appeared in my free hand even as I released Gurgi, ready to defend both the fuzzy thief and the man the beast still had inadvertently pinned.

"Gurgi," the newcomer huffed. Then his eyes fell on the Keyblade and me. His sword hissed completely free of its scabbard.

Even as I readied myself, my eyes narrowing and my off hand joined my other hand on Ultima Weapon's heavily sculpted hilt, Gurgi released the harp and let it recoil into the elderly man's head. "Master? Oh, old man fell down!" he shouted, attempting to draw attention to himself. Shoving himself under the gentleman, he tried to lift the much larger individual up by lifting at his arms. "Get up. Get up," he commanded.

Staggering to his feet and snatching his harp possessively, the man stumbled to the younger boy's side and glared at Gurgi. Even as the tan creature held the older man's hat behind his back and shuffled to my side, the theft's victim snapped, "Well, really. Who is your pungent little friend?"

Just as I was about to answer, the boy at the man's side snarled, "He's no friend of mine. He's just a coward and a thief. And I don't even know the other one."

"Sora is Gurgi's new friend!" Gurgi readily supplied, much to my consternation.

"So, you're starting to call servants of the Horned King friend now, Gurgi?" the boy hissed softly.

"Servant of the Horned King? Where do you get off with claims like that?" I bit, digging my sneakers firmly into the grass to get a firm feel for the ground below me, my muscles bunched and ready for battle.

"Who else would have a sword like that?"

"No servant, that's for sure! Just because you don't know a Keyblade when you see one-"

"What's a Keyblade supposed to be? What's it supposed to do?" the boy snapped at me. "Doesn't look very effective."

"Oh, I'll show you how effective it can be," I growled. "Just try to defend yourself with your sorry excuse for a sword. Thing doesn't even look half as decent as Leon's gunblade!"

"Oh really? Ha! I'll show you. This sword is magic. You'd better be ready," my impromptu opponent snarled.

"Magic, shmagic. Just means you'll cry more when my Keyblade destroys it."

"Hey, Sora!" Donald yelled from his place in the copse of trees, jumping up and down and waving to get my attention. "What do you think you're doing, you big palooka?"

"Gawrsh, and here I thought I was the big palooka, Donald."

"You shush, Goofy," the duck snarled.

"Ha! And he has an ambush set up! I knew you're a servant of the Horned King!" the boy proclaimed.

The man huffed and shook his head, laying a hand on the sword-holding boy's shoulder. "Taran, my lad, will you calm yourself? If he was a servant of the Horned King, he would have likely attacked by now!"

"Wait a second," I breathed. "Taran? The pig-keeper?"

The boy 'Taran' bristled at that.

"Dallben sent us lookin' for you!" Goofy supplied as he stepped forward, walking straight to my side. "He wanted us to make sure you and Hen Wen are safe."

"Dallben?" Taran questioned, his stance sliding from ready to reserved as he let the tip of his sword point towards the ground. I in turn mimicked his change in readiness, relaxing my grip on the Keyblade and letting one hand leave its hilt.

Just then, a beautiful young girl entered the clearing with us all, staring with huge blue eyes at the gathering before her. Dark blonde hair held out of her face by a purple circular band framed a round face with pursed pink lips. A purple vest with red edging and a red dip between her breasts accentuated her upper body, while a soft pink skirt with a white under-dress and soft black slipper-like shoes completed her ensemble. A startled gasp left her lips. "What's going on here?"

Taran gestured towards Gurgi with a quick pointing of his sword. "This little wretch was trying to steal from Fflewddur," he professed. "And he brought these people here, too."

I stiffened. "'These people'? The nerve of that- yeow!"

Shaking my foot, I glared at the duck who'd stomped on it to interrupt me.

Gurgi set a harsh glare at Taran before throwing the hat he'd been hiding behind his back on the ground. "Hmph. Too big anyway."

As the girl approached with a quiet sigh, Gurgi hurriedly straightened his hair while I just stared in… appreciation for her… poise. Yeah. That's it. But the girl ignored me completely, instead letting herself be enraptured by the behavior of the fuzzy beast at my side. She was soon giggling as he groomed himself quickly, professing, "You're charming."

Thrusting his hands behind his back, chest thrust forward and looking quite proud of himself, he happily regurgitated what the old man 'Fflewddur' had professed earlier. "And pungent, too."

The girl burst into laughter. Even I couldn't help but chuckle a little. With my lack of concentration on the situation with Taran, Ultima Weapon faded away.

Sheathing his sword, the boy Taran pressed his fists against his hips. "Well, what are you waiting for?" he bit at Gurgi.

Hiding behind Taran, Fflewddur waved his hand wildly at the creature. "Yes, yes. That's it. Toddle off. Toddle off."

"Hey," I snapped, looking at the pair. "Don't be so rough. He probably doesn't know any better!"

"Everyone can know better," Taran hissed.

"Oh, like everyone knows of the Keyblade. You know, you're about the first person I've ever met who didn't have a clue about it," I taunted, watching with amusement as he bristled and his face began to burn red.

"Oh, stop it you two!" the girl huffed.

"Gurgi go!" Gurgi loudly professed, turning and starting to stomp his way away from the suddenly tense clearing. Then he paused.

"Tracks? Tracks!" Gurgi loudly cried. "Gurgi remember. Saw piggy's tracks!"

Piggy's tracks? Hen Wen!

"You did?" Taran excitedly asked.

"Today!"

"When?" I confusedly questioned.

"On way back! Sora stumbling, didn't see. Gurgi's clever eyes see piggy's tracks, left by running feet!"

"Today?" Taran stated before wrinkling his nose and squinting his eyes. "Wait a minute."

Fflewddur sighed as he collapsed against Taran's back. "He'll try anything."

The girl stomped her foot and waved her fist at the two. "Oh, you're both horrid. He just might know."

"He probably does," I said. "I was kind of disoriented for the trip, so there's no way I'd have noticed anything like pig tracks."

"Same here," Donald admitted with a shake of his head.

"I was tryin' to keep track of where Sora was goin'," Goofy stated with a bright grin. "We'd already lost track of Taran and Hen Wen, so we didn't do as Mr. Dallben asked. I didn't want to lose Sora too!"

Gurgi turned and stared at us with shock in his big blue eyes. "Pretty lady, Sora and friends come too?"

"Well, I-" the girl began with some hesitation.

Gurgi excitedly grabbed her skirt and danced circles around her. "Yes, yes, yes! Follow Gurgi! Follow Gurgi!"

Even as she laughed and began to follow, Taran's aggravated voice called from behind us all, "You'd better be telling the truth.

Turning back, Gurgi happily proclaimed, "Gurgi not lie, not this time."

"Well, that's a relief," I said with mocked, sarcastic cheer to Donald.

"Tell me about it," the duck said as he crossed his arms and stomped along after our new fuzzy guide.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies:

me-obviously: First and foremost, you made me squeal shamelessly with your compliments on my writing style. Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I'm glad that each character is coming out so outstandingly different (and in your (and my own) opinion, IC)! That's the greatest compliment you could've offered me. BTW, germaphobes… (snicker, snork) Good one. I'm glad you enjoyed the Axel chapter, and hope this one delivers… even though it _does_ feature the world's most annoying hackysack. Punt the Ghurgi. You know you want to. (grin)

Melodious Flurry: Zank you! (pounces on plushies and scurries away to shove them in her closet to reside – in x-rated positions, of course) And glad you enjoyed it! 'least with only being 2 chapters behind, it's not that much to catch up on. (nod nod)

Hikari of the Moon: (grin) Hey, it's quite alright! Just means you weren't the first reviewer. Hope you had a good time with Pokemon Diamond. (nods vigorously) Anyway, glad the chapter satisfied. Axel is indeed the greatest player in KH:CoM, neh? So freaking cool! And thanks again for your great opinion about this fic. I'm glad it's still hanging in there with a positive opinion from you. (curtsies before banging her announcing gong) Hope this one was good 'nuff for you!

hybrid2: (deep curtsy) Thank you for your comment on my characterization! Now, see why this took awhile to get out? After frying my brain at work, getting Axel to flow correctly took many bottles of beer. But at least it seems to have worked. Go check youtube, actually – just 'bout all the new cutscenes from KH2:FM are there. Not with translations in many cases, but still there. Hotness. Don't ask me for translations – my kanji reading is piss-poor (re: second grade reading level, baby! If they had voice-acting, I'd understand more like half of it, but reading? Feh) and it took me for freaking ever to figure out what was going on enough to completely get Axel's story down. (tosses yet another of her home-made Heartless plushies into your corner of the car) Hope you liked the newest chapter, BTW! Thanks for reviewing.

cheeky doggie: Thanks for the review! Axel's a rather difficult character to tackle at times – trying to get the right amount of flippancy to combine with, ahem, 'evil' genius is fun at times. Sora's arrival at Castle Oblivion is set in stone so far as this story is concerned; I just have to finish up The Black Cauldron and the other movie he's going through before he gets there. Glad you liked that last chapter and hope you enjoyed this one!

terracannon876: Well, guess I can't please everyone. (shrugs) At least we're getting back to the tried and true characters very shortly, neh? Glad I could please you with the update, at least! Oh, and as for Robert Jordan – I love his Conan books. The Wheel of Time series is, in my opinion, longer than it needs to be. However, it's not filled with superfluous crap – everything that's in the story actually pertains to the story. I'm just hoping he finishes book 12 before he dies – and that he manages to tie up the five freaking plot lines he's still got open and taunting us all! It's somewhat complex, very, very long… but a good series if you have the patience for the length.

Kitty Kyinsky: Yeah, you just made the Toreador in me shudder. (smirk) But what the heck. I'm glad you found Axel entertaining. I'm certain he's skulking about, wishing for that offered firewood to appear. (grin) Thanks for reviewing!

scarlettHuntress: Well, thank you. It was a relief to pass those exams, let me tell you! And I do suppose you're right – I should appreciate the writing skills displayed in my flame. And the last chapter… well, it wasn't meant to be filler (more or less, it was to continue to tie the fic to KH:CoM), but… at least you liked it. (grin) Thanks for taking the time to submit!

Raz: Ah! So good to see another review from you! I'm glad you enjoyed Axel's characterization – truth be told, that was a difficult one to write. The research I had to put into it didn't make it particularly fun, either. But at least it all came off rather well, according to my readers. As for Roxas, I'm not certain if there will be room for him – but a person can never tell, neh? After all, Axel was a big of a surprise – I was hoping it'd be a Lexaeus chapter, but things just didn't quite work out that way. (rubs her head, confused as to why that happens sometimes) I'm glad you're still enjoying the fic! Hope you enjoyed the playing with Teran. And I hope you're looking forward to fun in Trabia. Goodness knows I am.

tebrighteyes: Thank you so much for the review! Glad to hear from yet another reader, and glad you're enjoying the story. I hope this newest chapter met with your expectations!

Jade003: (stares with wide eyes) Woah. That's, perhaps, the most unique and concise review blurb I've received to date. (grin) Thanks! And holy smokes, just discovered and read it up to date, eh? That's some dedication. I feel honored that you took the time! Hopefully the direction of the newest chapters agrees with you, and you found this newest one worth the wait. I promise I'll try to work in more Cloud torment… but Leon's my baby, so I can't help but crush him regularly. (takes a moment to squeal shamelessly as Squinoa scenes pour from her television… yep, playing through FF8. Again. The FMVs are pretty, damn it.)

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(digs frantically through her fridge) I need more rage… I need more… beer! Need more… to prep for the next chapter… and keep my writing streak going! (glances over at one of the many plushies thrown her way, eyebrow twitching violently as the damned Sephiroth plushie finishes pouring the last beer in the fridge on top of leftovers and snarks, 'Allow me the pleasure of taking it from you.') Nooooo! (as the authoress lies on the floor of her kitchen and wails in disbelief, her inspiration and imagination sliding over tuperware in golden rivets, Ansem plushie drop kicks Sephiroth plushie in the face before barking loudly, 'SUBMIT!')


	60. Snow

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

And as you can tell from the inexcusably long period of time between updates, I am indeed out of beer. It is a sad, sad time in my household.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 60  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Snow

I couldn't help but shiver as I watched Leon step free of the gummi ship, the Heartless tagging right at his heels. It wasn't owing to the relatively hopeless situation the world we'd descended upon was obviously experiencing; rather, it was due to the cold gusts of air that burst into the _Highwind_ the moment Cid released the ship's hatch and let it swing open.

All that time down in Hades' domain, the months in the Coliseum and my time at Hollow Bastion with its mild and serene weather had effectively eaten at my natural resilience to the cold.

My cheeks almost lit with frustrated embarrassment. For crying out loud, I grew up in Nibelheim, at the base of the grand Mount Nibel which was always overtaken with snow with the fall of winter. I rode snowboards every year of my childhood, so far as I could recall, down icy slopes for fun. Now I was shuddering at the very prospect of getting my boots drenched in cold white frozen water.

And there was Leon, marching out into that frozen wasteland like a fool. Took him a few moments to realize that it was indeed chilly outside; first he was just scanning the landscape with a calm sweep of his eyes, then he was gripping his biceps and shivering a bit.

Sighing fitfully, I shook my head and set myself to the task of retrieving my clothing and my sword from the communal pile of stuff.

Letting Leon freeze alone in the snow wasn't my prerogative, but he'd have to damned well wait until I got dressed. I might have been able to stand the snow in my younger years, but even then I daresay I wouldn't go racing out into it with bare feet and clothed in nothing but chocobo boxers.

Even as I finished pulling my shirt and pants on, fastening the belt that completed my old SOLDIER ensemble and clasping Vincent's tattered old cloak around my neck, I cast a concerned gaze out towards the fool gunblader.

He still stood motionless almost as if frozen in place, a dim spot of black on a glistening white canvas that barely held definition when viewed against the dark span that was the sky. The white fur of his short sleeved midriff jacket rustled gently under the influence of some snowy, cold breath of wind that snaked past him, sliding cool fingers over his tight leather pants and his loose-fitting white shirt.

I hurriedly grappled with the clawed glove that I wore on my left hand, the vision of Leon's statuesque frame unnerving me enough to encourage me to hurry to his side. By now, snow was probably melting into his boots and soaking his socks. He'd normally be bitching for days about that; I could never fail to recall how bitter and callous he always was coming into the fortress that marked the center of Hollow Bastion after a rain storm, his brow creased and his lips twisted into a scowl as he pulled wet socks off his feet with complete disdain. It was a strange thing to so unsettle the man, but the fact that something so minute could irritate him so terribly was almost… comedic. At this moment, though, it didn't seem marvelously funny; instead, it seemed rather sad and almost frightening that he would so blankly accept that which normally unhinged him.

It only took moments for me to find First Tsurugi buried underneath Cid's Venus Gospel and the thick belt he normally had wrapped around his waist. Lifting it away from its resting place, I stared in shock.

It wasn't like Leon to leave his gunblade lying around.

Frowning, I wrenched the surprisingly heavy weapon from its resting place on the ground and slung it casually over my shoulder.

Something was seriously up with him.

With a huff of breath, I glanced over at Cid. "Going to take all year?" I quietly ventured.

The crabby pilot snarled from his seat even as he continued to type on his precious gummi ship's computer's keyboard. "Give me a few damned minutes. I've got to get this scanning program up and running before we leave – that way, when we get back from wherever the damned nutcase gunblader's taking us, hopefully the _Highwind's_ radar's already pinpointed Hollow Bastion. That way we can swing by and get it recorded in the warp gummi again."

"Right. Meet us out there in a few minutes," I suggested.

"Just hold your fucking horses! I'll get out there when I'm done. Don't you think about ordering me to do nothin', Cloud," he bit at me even as he pulled a cigarette pack out of the gummi's primary dashboard compartment and shook a stick into his mouth. Chewing on it, he rummaged for a lighter before waving a hand at me. "I'll get there when I get there. Easy enough to follow you with the snow. Just take care – looked like there's lots of monsters out there. Look mean as hell, too."

"I think I can take care of a few monsters," I professed with a roll of my eyes before I stepped free of the gummi.

Argh. Talk about frigid. I couldn't help but shiver even as I hurried to Leon's side, taking enough notice of the Heartless standing at his left to approach on the stolid brunet's right. "Hey, Leon," I greeted, leaning forward a bit as to look at his face even as I used him as a temporary shield against the gusts of flake-blowing wind that raced over the chilled field.

He failed to acknowledge me, staring instead off into the darkness that swam beyond the land's edge.

A huff of breath escaped my nose before I followed the line of his sight and took in the vision of a door hovering in a sea of roiling black shadow. "The door to this world?" I ventured to guess.

The little Heartless stepped in front of myself and Leon, looking at that door with what I might classify as fright shining in his golden eyes.

"Yeah," Leon finally responded.

Clearing my throat, I stepped entirely in front of his line of vision, blocking his view and ensuring that his attention was diverted from the shadows he was staring so intently into. "So Leon," I began, tilting my hand slightly to jostle the gunblade it held upon my shoulder.

His eyes didn't fail to catch the motion, finally noticing that I held his precious Lionheart for the first time since I'd stepped free of the gummi's confines. "My gunblade?" he softly questioned, his voice….

His voice was soft. Broken.

Miserable.

My heart nearly clenched as I stared at him, looking into gray eyes that were dismal and distant, pleading for help and understanding yet refusing to reveal what the source of their pain could possibly be.

Holding his gunblade out to him, I frowned. "Not like you to forget it."

A sigh rattled his lungs as he took Lionheart into his hands, staring blankly at it before turning his face to stare once more at the blackened junction between unnatural sky and snowy ground.

"If you want to talk, I'll listen," I ventured.

Shaking his head once, Leon took a deep breath and let the exhalation accompany a tight shutting of his eyes. "No. It's fine."

"Really," I blandly observed.

"Yeah."

"Doesn't seem fine."

He huffed. "Whatever."

Ah. Now that sounded more like the Leon I'd come to know through the tournaments and my time at Hollow Bastion. Not the soft pleading for help, the despondent and broken man who stared with hopelessness at visions only he could see, but the crass bastard who didn't give a rat's ass about anything but his own objectives and those people he cared for. It almost brought a smile to my lips.

Suddenly, loud roaring and neighing barreled over the otherwise empty night's atmosphere. Soon enough thundering hoof beats accompanied frantic horses' screams, chased by the powerful beat of large feet pounding mightily on the powdered ground, the sounds carried upon gusting air.

"What the…?" Leon questioned, turning slightly to stare in the direction the sounds were resonating from.

The Heartless swiftly ducked behind me, apparently trying to hide in the confines of my cloak.

What I saw nearly took my breath away. At least it was proof the world was inhabited by something that wasn't Heartless.

Four massive beasts were charging wildly towards us, their huge red eyes verily glowing not with challenge or rage but fear. Cloven hooves beat down packed snow as they raced in our direction. Thick white manes flew behind them, accompanied by streaming snowy tails that contrasted starkly with the dark purple coloration of the fur that coated their equine bodies. Giant purple-colored sickle-shaped horns sprang from between their eyes, sweeping from their foreheads to nearly pierce the base of their long necks.

Unicorns…? Or something similar?

And then I saw what was chasing them.

Like I wouldn't know a behemoth when I saw one.

Plowing through the snow with unstoppable strength, thick muscles working powerfully underneath thick purple skin, the beast roared through its opened, fanged maw at its apparent prey. With a sweep of its powerful tail, it sent snow flying effortlessly behind it even as it planted all four of its massive, clawed paws into the ground itself and came to a sudden stop.

The unicorn creatures scattered around us, using us as a convenient barricade to separate them from the horned monstrosity that had been hunting them. With wild and happy roars the beasts thundered into the distance, the sounds of their pounding hooves drowned out seconds later by the deafening roar unleashed by the behemoth before us.

Staring into the huge drool-flooded maw before us, staring at my reflection as it shimmered on saliva-coated razor-sharp fangs before lifting my gaze to look into glowing red eyes that narrowed beneath huge curved horns, I huffed and swung my weapon easily before me.

"Hold on a second, Cloud," Leon warned, his voice suddenly lacking that broken quality it had held before, business-like stoicism carried upon his tone at that moment instead. "I need to junction. Wasn't ready for battle."

Glancing over to him, I shrugged. "Do what you need. I'll get this taken care of."

Looking back to the behemoth, my eyes narrowed and the familiar fire of Mako burning in my veins, I leapt into the air and flew straight towards the monster's horned face. Unnatural strength surged through my frame, launching me with as much grace and agility into and through the air as I'd been able to accomplish with the wing Hades grafted onto my back.

Bristled mane raising in response to my threatening pounce, the giant beast surged back a couple of steps and threw out its chest, folding the tiny black webbed wings that sprang from its shoulder blades back towards its spine. Thick, spiked tail lashing cat-like in the snow, it bellowed forth with a massive roar even as I smashed the edge of First Tsurugi as hard as I could onto the behemoth's huge forehead right between its curved horns.

Next thing I knew, I was pummeled cleanly into the snow. Every bone in my body felt as if it had been shattered, crushed mercilessly by stone and concrete-hard powder.

Dazed and confused, I tried to lift my head only to behold a sight I never thought I'd be forced to witness again.

The blackened sky was even darker than before, the faint light of stars banished from my vision by massive rocks thundering down from the heavens, flaking off one planet-sized rolling ball of destruction.

_Meteor_.

I could only lay helplessly on the ground as boulder after boulder crashed into the abused land, punching geysers of snow hundreds of feet into the air with the force of their impacts. My bones snapped audibly as I was hit with yet another piece of debris from the planet-killer that hurtled its way towards us, eliciting a cry of pain from my throat.

The little Shadow threw himself over my head in a vain attempt to defend me.

Then Leon leaped forward, gunblade in hand and murder in his eyes.

As he slammed his weapon heartily onto the beast's skull with a thick cracking sound, he stumbled back a few feet and looked critically at the behemoth.

It threw its body back, slamming its forelimbs onto the ground in anger and opened its maw to roar.

No sound came from its throat. It looked as confused as I did at its sudden lacking ability to produce any audible noise, looking wildly left and right before casting its red glower to the heavens and watching as the summoned stoned of its previous spell simply rolled off into the black sky, avoiding another dangerous pass towards our location.

Apparently, the beast had called down Meteor. And without its capacity to produce any menacing sound, it couldn't call it down any longer.

I would have thought that the advantage of revoking the monstrous behemoth's ability to produce its devastating spell attack would make the battle resolve itself within moments. I was shocked when it was still standing, still battling with all of its heart and soul, trying desperately to crush Leon and myself even as Cid finally ran to meet us on the battlefield.

Greeting me with a potion thrown forcefully at my head, I scowled even as I cracked it open and poured its contents on myself, a sigh of relief coming to my lips as its magic mended my body with unmatchable speed.

"The fuck?" Cid growled, his voice flooded with shock. "What the hell! A behemoth? But this ain't part of home!"

"Guess it's a similar world," I blandly intoned. "Damned thing won't die."

Sure enough, it shook its head as I completed a full-blown Omnislash and decided to smash its horns into my body. I fell back with a hearty thump in the snow.

"Because they sample your power and adjust their own to match," Leon's quiet voice intoned.

"Monsters can't do shit like that!" Cid bit.

"Maybe not where you're from," Leon snorted. "They do it naturally here. No matter how powerful a mercenary becomes, the monsters are always a viable threat and possible match for him."

Dragging myself out of the snow I'd been pounded into, I shook my head ruefully, snow flinging out of my spikes and my sodden hair hanging limply in my face. "Fabulous," I grunted.

Just as the behemoth reared back again, its eyes focused on Cid and murder gleaming in their depths, another roar burst over the landscape.

I watched in surprise as Leon paled.

"What?" I softly asked even as I turned my attention back to the behemoth, watching with relative surprise as it turned and fled, its spiked tail leaving a huge groove in the snow as it ran away from us.

Then I sensed it. I heard the beating of huge leathery wings on the gusting cold winter air, the creaking of thick skin moving over rippling muscles. I smelled the stench of must and rotten flesh, the stale smell of scales and dried skin. I felt heat carried upon that frosty breeze, fiery snorts breathed in our direction.

With a slight gulp, I turned.

And I watched a ruby-hued dragon fly directly over our location, its roar deafening and leaving my ears ringing as it blasted over our little party in hot pursuit of the behemoth we'd been battling earlier.

"Holy mother of fuck," Cid quietly quaked. "I think I might've just shit myself."

"That dragon just saved us," I observed.

"Because it's hunting. A behemoth's more filling than three scrawny humans and a Shadow," Leon blandly grunted. "If there's a dragon hunting in the area, this might be our best opportunity to reach that town. Every monster between us and those gates should be scattering."

Turning to me, burning cigarette firmly clenched between his teeth, Cid nodded. "Sounds like a plan. What'd'ya say, Cloud?"

"Sure thing. Let's get to town," I said with a nod.

Amazingly enough, the rest of our trip was pretty uneventful. Every now and again a roar would barrel over the landscape accompanied by fleeing birds bursting from thinned forests on snow-drenched wings with startled screams roaring from their tiny beaks. The faint starlight that lit our path dwindled a bit as lonely black clouds rolled overhead and snow began to flake down around us.

Soon we were all shivering, cold washing over our bones and through our clothing and brushing over our flesh. It was beginning to hurt to draw breath, ice filling my lungs with every inhalation. My toes were going numb in my boots, as were my fingers in my gloves. First Tsurugi felt horribly heavy as it rested its chilled metal length in its frozen leather sheath upon the small of my back.

Clenching Vincent's worn cloak, I gathered it around my body as tightly as I could and rubbed my arms ruefully.

How Cid could march along, looking as if he was taking a stroll on a beach during a warm spring day with a cigarette dangling between his lips and his Venus Gospel casually slung over his shoulder, was far beyond me.

As it was, I was tempted to offer Leon a place within my cloak. His teeth were chattering, his gloved hands gripping his bare arms fiercely. Even if it might be a touch awkward, it was the least I could do.

Walking to his side, I carefully draped my arm over his hunched shoulders, drawing my cloak along his body with my hand. He stiffened in surprise for only a moment before casting me a grateful look and a small sliver of a ghostly smile.

I turned my gaze to those distant mountains, fully convinced that the longer we walked the further away they slunk. Our only conceivable destination seemed so impossibly far away, the distance between us and any restitution crawling farther from us with every dragged step towards the tiny town we'd spotted upon our descent.

Weaving into a small sliver of those thin, sparse woods, we were left with no choice but to follow Leon's trudging footsteps – even without visual confirmation of the direction in which the town we were aiming for rested, he seemed to have an innate if not entirely uncanny sense that told him where we needed to go.

It wasn't long before we spotted another of those strange unicorn beasts. Unlike the others, this one wasn't in a herd, nor was it fleeing from anything. It was feeding on sparse foliage that had barely prodded its way free of its eternal snowy prison to feel the fresh night air.

With a snort, the beast lifted its head and glowered at us.

Before it could turn, neigh, run, or do whatever it had intended, a sharp crack burst from the air behind one massive tree approximately fifteen feet ahead of us.

As the unicorn creature's horn burst free of its head and it let out a hideous shriek of rage, another crack rang out.

Blood spurted from the beast's neck, transitioning its shriek into a gargle of bubbly hissing.

"Hey, no bad!" Cid burst cheerfully, a smile on his lips even as he turned towards the direction those shots had to have emerged from.

My Mako-enhanced sight caught a quick glimpse of the person responsible for the monster's death.

A slender woman of about my age, auburn hair tied in a loose pony tail, wearing a tattered skirt and worn shirt with heavily embroidered shoulder flaps and a large time-ravaged bow at the base of her neck. Hazel eyes looked us over, assessing us individually.

She cried out in alarm and fled as soon as her eyes beheld the tiny Shadow at my side.

"Wait!" I attempted to call, taking one step forward and thrusting my clawed hand in her direction in a vain attempt to stop her.

"Let her go, Cloud," Leon softly intoned, shivering slightly from the sudden exposure to the night's frozen elements my rapid movement and drawing away of my cloak-bearing arm had lent to him.

"But we're nothing to run from," Cid bit sharply, his voice bitter.

"The Heartless is," the gunblader sighed softly. "This world was ravaged by them. This world's heart was shattered by them. These people know the Heartless. They know what terrors they can bring. They deal with the monsters everyday – from the looks of things, though, the Heartless have abandoned this world; they haven't had to deal with Shadows since the remainder of the world cascaded into darkness."

"Leon," I quietly whispered.

"Might be best if we avoided the town entirely and just traveled to the ruins. That's my intended destination, anyway," he softly muttered. "Let these people live in what peace they can derive in these lands."

Even as the Heartless cast us all a look I could only call sorrowful, I reached down and lightly patted his head between his antennae. "Sounds fine to me."

We set off once more, following Leon's crunching footfalls through the freshly fallen snow.

And though I'm certain none of us failed to notice it, we all astutely avoided mentioning the encroaching waves of darkness that lapped ever closer to our destination.

_-to be continued-_

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Review replies: 

Melodious Flurry: Neo-Shadow! (pounce, chew, grin) Ah, thank ye. As for the review! Glad you found it… interesting, at least! Not really into the Black Cauldron? Well, hopefully I can write it well enough that knowledge (or recollection) of the movie won't be necessary to follow along. Hope this new chapter worked for you! (chews on her new plushie some more)

Jade003: Ah hah. Annoys the hubby, eh? Kind of like it annoys the boyfriend when I start drooling on my controller over Squall or Jr. Well, not so much Jr… he can pick on me for that one and accuse me of pedophilic lustings. (we just won't bring up the fact that I'm damned near old enough to have birthed Squall… not Leon yet, fortunately. Just his ever so hot FF8 self) Ahem. Tangent done. Got to fly on those from time to time. Anyway, to properly reply to your review! Thanks for your compliments concerning my portrayal of the characters. I'm glad that I'm able to make unknown characters vivid and knowable! It's sometimes a challenge trying to recall that not everyone's got my ancient movie experiences and would know right off their heads what Fflewddur would look like, just for a quick example. The gummi ship theory… eh heh. I personally think they run off of… Disney magic? Either that or Cid's got his ramped up to run off cigarette smoke and flatulence. (snicker) Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing, and hope you liked the new chapter!

cheeky doggie: Thanks for reviewing, first and foremost! I'm glad that my characters came out nice and crisp and clear. Yeah, Gurgi's just like that in the movie. In fact, many of his lines came right from the script. And as for Sora's reaction to Taran…? Well, they're both adolescent boys with mystic swords. It only seemed natural for them to get the 'mine's better than yours' complex going! (grins) I'm so happy that you liked my castle description, too! I was afraid it wouldn't come out well in the wash, considering how much it made me squeal in delightful horror the first time I ever saw it (way back in the day… like, in theatres). Sora, receiver of the short end of the stick… yep. Absolutely. But at least his chapter came out well! Hope you enjoyed more FF-crew and the Shadowy blighter. (smile)

hybrid2: Checking out youtube would definitely do you wonders. One guy on there has all the optional battles from Final Mix up there – Zexion stomps his ass many, many times over. And Lexaeus! Holy smokes is all I've gotta say to that fight. And yeah, I'm a Tory. :) Hmm, no beer to replenish my supply? (whines pitifully before slinking to her own refrigerator and glaring into it) Wow, I need to go shopping. Sheesh. Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

scarlettHuntress: Well, I'm glad the last chapter was still interesting despite it not really making much sense. Guess I fell a touch short on my descriptions, eh? Oh well. Hopefully this chapter made up for it!

Li the Twilight Knight: Ah hah. Aku-Roku got old really, really fast for me. (rubs the back of her head) I'm far more bent towards LexZex, but I give Aku-Roku a kindly smile and a nod. Don't' mind it, but won't write it – too overdone. (though one could say the same of Cleon, but hey! They're freaking gorgeous. And it's Squall. It's Squall! (flails like a mad person) I HAVE to write it! It's Squall! (is sedated)) Anyway, thanks for your compliments on my Axel chapter. That was a pain to write, and I'm glad you enjoyed it. (grabs flung plushies) Woo hoo! (scampers off)

hangliderswing: Thanks for the review! Hope you stay with the story.

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(hums merrily along with 'Yellow Submarine') We all live… (blinks, marveling at the odd stares coming in her direction) What? (yelps as she's pummeled into paste by an irate Ansem plushie, who snarls fitfully, "Those who know nothing understand nothing!" with fervor, even as the authoress marvels that this entire blurb didn't make a lick of sense. A yellow submarine, a yellow submarine, a yellow submarine. Submitting a review would be nice. Maybe it'll guide my brain back home.) And excuse the typos. I didn't feel like firing up the old Playstation to check my spelling. Or browsing online. Because I'm a lazy 'tard. Submit, please! 

(sighs as the Ansem plushie shakes his head at her in silent lamentation of how lame her plea for reviews came across before accentuating it with his own mighty of bark of "SUBMIT!")


	61. Time

To start, I'm a shmuck. I forgot to inform you, my dear readers who review, that I actually got the thanks for 300+ reviews up on my deviantart account. The link's on my author's profile page. (thwacks her head with a paper fan) I've gotten myself a livejournal account that I will probably update more often than any other account I hold (I'm wendsh there). I'm also a shmuck in that I missed a detail in the last chapter and had to go back and edit it. Thanks for noticing it, Jade003!

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

Wow. I might totally bomb this chapter. Depends… because… it's… a NEW PERSON! NEW PERSON! NEW PERSON! (is sedated)

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 61  
The Former Turk – Time

Time.

To some, it is the ultimate motivator. It is the force that drives individuals to act, accomplishing feats both mundane and astonishing. It is that which hinders and limits mankind, forcing restrictive limitations on even the most astonishing genius.

One could argue, though, that without the stringent weight of time resting upon the shoulders of frail humans, without that constant reminder hovering over their mortal consciousnesses, they would accomplish nothing. Without limitations and boundaries set, there would be no efforts to break said boundaries and press beyond those limits.

Time – destroyer and creator, that which brings action and termination to action in the barest flicker of its passing.

To man, there is nothing more conflicting than his feelings of time. His youth is spent wishing for time to pass, longing for the freedoms of adulthood to come at last. His adolescence is wasted wishing for those milestone years. His adulthood is lavishly lathed with preparation for the ultimate future. His antiquity is spent reflecting on the wasted years, longing to revisit those bygone days and perhaps repeat or repent for actions taken or not taken.

In that scope, perhaps, I can still identify with humanity.

While time no longer has any ability to motivate me, the heavy weight of its passage rests solidly upon my frame.

Timeless though I may have become, I still have my regrets and my longings, my desires and my motives. Time still moves my world, bringing resolution to many of my actions and sorrowful memories of lacking actions to my mind.

Though time might not age my body any longer thanks to the machinations of the past, it still heavily settles upon my existence. Though it does not interact with me, it amalgamates with all around me and affects me all the same.

My penance was determined to be complete. My slumber ended with the abrupt arrival of young brash people determined to undermine to desires of fate and turn the future to their own desires.

While I had no future to hope for, I had found myself dragged along with those bright and hopeful men and women. I had, for the first time in decades, found myself lavishing in the passage of time.

The noise, the chaotic ebbing of sound that accompanied the passage of time and the wailing of those who would defy its power, had returned to my life.

Surprisingly I'd found it pleasant after the jarring resonance of its reintroduction to mainstream existence had finally begun to fade.

Existing with others, sharing their triumphs and failures even while paying for my sins through action rather than through silent resignation, had begun to become an acceptable, if not fairly pleasurable way to continue what was becoming increasingly obvious to be a perceptibly eternal life.

Just as time had become a march I was willing to participate in once again, everything had been brought to a premature halt.

Time stopped its progression as the shadows burst to life, a doorway to darkness appearing upon our Planet and throwing itself open to disgorge its captive inhabitants into our light-flooded world.

It's strange how at one moment time is perfectly stationary, allowing a man to stare into the face of disaster with grim realization that this threat, perhaps, was one that would bring his new-found induction into the flow of normalcy to an end immediately before exploding into a rapid descent to destruction. One blink of an eye shows shadowy creatures staring with golden eyes at the lands and their inhabitants. The next features movement more rapid than any brain, human or otherwise, would dare to image possible for anything so seemingly corporeal. Movement that would not slow, defying time's laws and moving beyond time itself.

One moment the people of the newfound Edge were staring in enraptured horror at the strange portal that had opened near the edge of the tumbling remains of Midgar Reactor Number 2, their mouths gaping and fingers pointing with disbelief. The very next those people were screaming, running as others stared with blank eyes while their hearts were ripped from their chests and enveloped in impenetrable darkness.

Oh, Lucrecia. My sins were compounded that day. I fought as valiantly as I believed I could, but not a single life was saved by my actions.

My efforts were as useful as I had been during that time when I was still sleeping in my coffin, the fall of darkness yet another nightmare to plague my penitent rest.

All that surrounded me perished. I had willingly closed my eyes when the realization that my attempts were a piteous attempt against the crushing power of darkness that was washing out of the opened door none knew existed before its expulsion of death-delivering blackness.

Perhaps if I had tried another tactic, a different path, or even tried more valiantly to rescue even one person who fell around me I would have emerged successful.

Perhaps it would have been that person, that possible innocent, to emerge from the blanket of darkness upon this snowy world rather than myself.

Instead it was me, a man whose attempt to correct my past mistakes by involving myself in bringing the salvation of the Planet, a man with sin and darkness racing rampant through his soul, who stepped free of shadow onto a world with an eternally black sky with no moon, lit only by starlight glistening on an ethereal blanket of packed snow. It was me who emerged into this world of monsters and terrified people, of isolation and apathy where man did not aid man for fear of endangering himself.

This strange world that was apparently devoid of a Life Stream, where materia loses its potency with every use. Its ability to restore its power was logically destroyed by the lack of its source, reducing it to nothing more than a limited-use item powered only by the willpower of the person holding it and expenditure of what mystic energy that person could pour through it. This cold world where even a Fire 1 would not do enough to vanquish the chill in a man's bones, where Ultima spells did no respectable damage to those beasts that roamed the lands, where no matter how strong a person becomes the monsters seem to emulate that strength and match it with unimaginable precision.

Here there was no gathering desperate to save this world against all odds from whatever fate plagued it. Those people were lost with the shadowy destruction of our Planet. I was nowhere near them during our final hours, unable to offer any assistance, mired in shadow while they presumably fell to darkness.

My inability to affect what had occurred lead me to self recrimination, driving me to delve deep into the bowels of the ruined structure that rose from the ashen snow beyond the small town I'd awakened near. The compiling of my errors encouraged me to seek refuge away from the small struggling village with its battle-worn citizens whose haunted eyes showed far too much knowledge of darkness to be innocent.

I'd found my way, quite accidentally, in a huge chamber within those ruins that seemed to have, at one time, functioned as a library. Pressing the doors open with the strength lent to my frame by the experiments run through my body and the protomateria imbedded in me to control the lethal weapon I'd been infused with, I'd found a haven of literary volumes. A perfect place to sleep.

Rest would not fall easily upon me as it had done after the realization of my horrible crimes against Lucrecia and her innocent child, my failure to save the person I loved from the insanity of Gast and Hojo, my failure to rescue her child from damnation. Rest would not visit my tired eyes.

So instead I'd found myself searching the labyrinthine structure I'd entered.

I'd discovered that it had a generator. The limited time I'd spent with Shinra in Administrative Research, combined with the exposure I'd had to the madman behind the Cait Sith robots lent me enough knowledge to restore it to operation.

For an indeterminable amount of time I'd had power. I'd been able to boot a computer in the library, to access its public records and learn of the fall of the remains of the world I had found myself inhabiting.

I'd learned of its crumbling, so similar to that of my own Planet. I'd learned of the opening of the door of darkness in a shattered land called Centra, of the wash of shadowy creatures that had swallowed countries referred to as Esthar, Galbadia, and Balamb. I'd learned of the Shumi, a now extinct people, of Moombas, of Hyne and Sorceresses and SeeD. I'd learned of the heroes of this world, people who'd traversed through impossible obstacles to stop the compression of time and the eminent destruction of known existence.

I'd learned how those heroes had met their fate in Balamb, swallowed with their Garden according to the person who'd entry would remain infinitely memorable to me for being the last in the record I'd accessed. I'd learned what misery the fall of those seemingly indestructible guardians of the world had brought to the people of the final remaining continent of the planet and how they'd lost hope when shadows began lapping at their shores.

Such a destitute world, this shattered shard that hovers on the brink of darkness.

The door is here, open and looming. It stands tall and indomitable, dark even upon blackened sky, far too close for any comfort in the distance and looming ominously across what would be the horizon.

I believe all that holds those shadowy destroyers at bay is the apathy of the people here.

In my time amongst the library's tomes, I've sought knowledge about those dark invaders. My inability to affect the fate of the Planet was driving me to a different realization of penitence – I would learn what I could about the beasts that swallowed worlds, lending what knowledge I garnered to those who would fight to change the inevitable fate of our existence.

Some scant information existed, apparently entered before the ruins I had come to inhabit had been abandoned when the generator had succumbed to minor mechanical failure, their engineers having apparently perished during the first wave of monsters' attacks to befall this normally hallowed haven as the machine was simple enough for me to repair, even with my limited knowledge.

From that information I'd learned that those golden-eyed shadows that had appeared attacked persons or beings with strong dispositions towards idealistic venues. 'Goodness,' some would call it. 'Light' as others would profess. Darkness seeking light, destroying light, conquering light as poetically rendered by one entry.

But other entries conflicted with this initial rendition of the purports of those animated beasts of shadow, pointing with vigor towards individual cases where darkness fell over those whose ideals rested nowhere near the standardized classifications of 'good.' Rather than relentless destruction of the hearts of those persons, they were reportedly absorbed by the shadowy beasts that emerged from that distant door and assimilated into their ranks. Regardless of the bend of conviction, it seemed through compiled reports and incidents that the only common thread in the appearance and ferocious attacks of those mysterious beings was a strong conviction. Strong ideals and powerful feelings drew them as moths to flames.

Which is what has brought me to the conclusion that the only reason the remains of this world remain floating untouched in the sea of darkness that laps hungrily at its shores is that none with strong hearts, light or dark, exist here anymore. No monster could be classified as 'dark' or 'evil' – they were instinctual creatures, simply trying to carve an existence from a harsh land where territory and food, water and warmth were miserably lacking. No man could be classified as 'dark' or 'evil' or 'good' or 'light.' They were as the monsters now were – trying from day to day to live in a land that would show no mercy, striving to continue on a world that would lend no warmth with no sun to light its snowy grounds.

Their perseverance was admirable, but really it was nothing spectacular. No person would take a stand against fate. They simply accepted the inevitable, dedicating themselves only enough to continue living while the world steadily thrummed on the edge of destruction.

This world was on a horrible precipice, teetering steadily towards destruction. All that saved it was the lack of conviction in any of its inhabitants, the lack of any desire to draw those heartless shadows back from the door they'd returned to once the diminishing of the planet's determination had encouraged them to lose interest in its continued decimation.

Regardless of my findings and my conclusions, I hoped to find more. A method to repel something crafted of shadows, to separate their 'darkness' from our 'light.' Something that didn't sound so far-fetched or so dangerous as the mysterious fable of the 'Keyblade.'

What I'd found was information about a weapon that exists in darkness, light and that twilit land that hovers between the extremes of the spectrum. A weapon that could only be wielded by those who held the strongest convictions of 'light' or 'dark' or 'twilight' in their hearts. Weapons that had been used to vanquish worlds when utilized in correlation to the attacks of dark shadows. Weapons that had been used to save worlds when used against those attacks. Weapons that caused decimation and complete destruction when used against one another. Weapons that threatened the balance of light and darkness itself when used in cooperative harmony with one another. A double-edged blade, enforcing one ideal while encouraging the death of the other.

Such is a weapon that sent shivers down my spine. It was something certainly not meant for any to touch, capable of destroying much needed balance.

While some would advocate use of such a legendary weapon to vanquish darkness, I could not bring myself to agree with such a view.

After all, how could one define light if darkness ceased to exist?

An ideal could not exist without its counterpoint. Not many people seem to realize that simple fact.

It's a quandary I'm personally familiar with. The chaos that rests in my soul, the demons that plague my heart, are carefully balanced by my own sense of justice and, dare I say, good. My destructive longings are counteracted by my desire to assist those who require aid. Chaos and myself, two different beings inhabiting a single vessel and existing in constant conflict with one another, define each other.

Perhaps my viewpoint maintains me neutral, not heavily enough bent towards light or darkness to draw any further attention from the black shadows with their golden eyes. Perhaps that's why I was able to step free of the abyss that awaited me, my will driving me to escape an absolution in which half of my soul could find no definition.

Perhaps that's why my appearance on this perfectly balanced sliver of a world did nothing to tip its balance and encourage those dark beasts to return.

It had been during my research into the fabled weapon, pouring through scarce accounts lifted from ageless tomes and digitized for convenience, that the power had gone out once more.

That time, the generator proved irrecoverable.

And so I had returned to the library and shut its door, comfortable within its dark confines and sequestered from the world, reading those magazines and books that rested upon towering shelves first by the light of flashlights discovered in a desk drawer, then by candlelight delivered by small wax stubs found in a box underneath the receptionist's counter and lit by the last of my Fire 1 materia's capacity.

When the last of my candles had burned and my battery-powered flashlights were rendered useless by overuse, I was left in the dark, behind a barricade to protect me from discovery.

Once again, I was closed in a tomb. Only this time there would be no party of degenerates to pry my sanctuary open and awaken me from my penance.

I had attempted to sleep, perhaps to dream, in that chilled room. However, rest would not come to my weary spirit.

So I sat awake and alone in that ruinous structure's belly, as impotent in assisting with this world's struggle for survival as I'd been with my Planet's fight to live. My breathing slow and easy, my stomach empty but undemanding as the experiments performed upon me by Hojo had forever left it, I existed once more in stasis.

I could not begin to determine how much time had slithered past me, how many snowstorms had ravaged the land above. All I could do was lean comfortably against the wall I'd stationed myself against amongst the books I'd been reading, letting the dust settle about me.

Needless to say, after such a peacefully uneventful expenditure of time, the sound of footsteps outside of the library's massive electrically-driven door was startling.

My fingers twitched slightly, the urge to reach for Cerberus almost overwhelming. Something had come to intrude upon my solitude.

Then there were voices to accompany those footfalls in the vacant hallway outside.

"This should be it," professed a voice I didn't recognize.

"You certain he'd be here, Leon?" another voice asked, its tone so very familiar it almost hurt to hear it. A gruff, snarling biting tone that I'd not heard since the days before the fall of the Planet. I was certain my imagination was dancing wildly within my mind – there'd be no way that Cid Highwind could possibly be upon this world, after all. He'd perished with the Planet, as everyone else had.

"Yes," the voice now named 'Leon' replied. "If he's the intellectual you profess he is, then he'd take a logical measure to learn about the world he's in. Perhaps he'd even try to search for information about the occurrences that draw the Heartless. The only place in which to do that here would be the library."

"And you're sure this snowed-in, monster-infested shit hole has a library?" the Cid voice asked.

"Positive."

"Well," a new voice sounded, "let's check it out."

… Cloud…?

The door creaked as it was shoved on dusty tracks, forced to open despite its lacking powered facilities. Gears ground painfully within the wall's structure and metal squealed shrilly on metal.

I forced my eyelids to part and stared intently at that door as it was pried open and my sanctuary was violated once more.

It should have been a joyous exclamation to burst from my lips, or perhaps a cynical comment concerning the amount of time that had passed between fall of the Planet and reunion. Perhaps I should have greeted them by name, or perhaps risen to my feet and granted them a nod. After all, I was actually incredibly pleased to see Cloud Strife and Cid Highwind once more after their supposed deaths. It was refreshing to know that I wasn't the only survivor of the Planet's devastating end.

Instead, I found myself mumbling, "So _that's_ what happened to my cloak."

Bright Mako eyes blinked, their blue orbs huge to accompany a gaping jaw and spiked blond hair. "Vincent! You… you…!"

"Well, I'll be," the other blond said with a laugh and a manic grin that clamped tightly on his ever-present cigarette as he entered the room. "Vincent, you dog! Hiding here this whole damned time. Fucking hell, we should've known that even the Heartless wouldn't be able to keep you down, you old vampire."

"Likewise," I grunted as I lifted myself from my comfortable seat and rose to my feet.

"Leon was right," Cloud breathed quietly, blinking the shock from his eyes. "You really… but why here?"

With a calm shrug, I leaned against the wall I had previously been seated against. "Who can know? I desired freedom from the darkness and knowledge of what phenomena had occurred. The first portal from darkness lead here."

"Damn, you're one lucky son of a bitch," Cid breathed appreciatively.

My hand was instantly on my gun, Cerberus drawn immediately from its holster at my hip and aimed.

I'd spotted movement behind Cid.

A dark slithering shadow with golden eyes.

Grabbing the pilot by his shoulder, I shoved him behind myself as I strode forward one easy step. "Stay back," I commanded the two blonds.

Even as I fired, the beast fell into two-dimensions, bullets bouncing harmlessly from the stone it had flattened itself against.

"What the hell are you doing!" Cid yelled in my ear, grabbing at my arm even as Cloud shouted at me to stop and leaped into my path of fire.

I was boggled by their reaction.

Those creatures had destroyed our world. Yet they were defending it…?

"He's not like the rest, Vincent!" Cloud exclaimed wildly. "He's still got a connection to his heart. Don't shoot him!"

Scowling, I turned to the younger blond. "I expect that I will receive an explanation."

"Later," the stranger whose voice I'd heard on the other side of the door called from his retained place in the hallway. "I, for one, don't want to freeze down here all day. We've found what we were looking for. Let's move on."

"Oh for crying out loud," Cid hissed as he slowly released my arm and strode over to the shadowy spot on the ground, tapping at it with his foot. "March here, march there, fucking climb down elevator shafts in the fucking ice and snow and fight monsters from here on 'till for-fucking-ever. Give us a few minutes to breath!"

"Quit complaining," the man outside sighed.

"No, you bitch!" Cid continued. "Listen for five fucking minutes, Mister High-And-Mighty. We need rest. We need healing. Our fucking materia's drained for some weird reason, and you said yourself that you're low on those phoenix pinion things. We're running into monsters left and right up there, and it's so fucking cold out there that my testicles are going to be permanently frozen. We're_not_ going to be able to trek all the way back to the fucking gummi in this state!"

"So we'll stop at the village."

"Come on, Cid," Cloud quietly sighed. "Leon's right to try and move us out of here quickly. The place is crawling with monsters, and the longer we remain stationary, the more likely they'll find us."

"Bah," Cid grunted before kicking at the shadowy spot again. "Get up, you little git. Time to fucking move."

To my shock and amazement, the shadow reformed and toddled obediently after Cid, antennae perched high upon its head. It only looked at me with concern once before refocusing its gaze on the elder blond and racing to catch up with him.

Resting my eyes on the retreating form of Cid Highwind for a moment, I studied the scene. He was approaching a brunet in the hallway, one who looked eerily like a man featured in the articles I'd poured through while the computer had been operational. Jagged scar running between his brows, beginning above the right eye and terminating under the left. Lion-shaped pendent. An easily identified, thanks to the Weapons Monthly magazine I'd been reading when my last candle burned out, gunblade attached by a clasp to one crossed belt by means of its trigger guard. Leather and fur and gray eyes that stared with sharp intensity at the world.

Certainly my mind was jumping to conclusions. I would have to verify my suspicions once we'd reached our next destination.

Without further delay, I stepped forward, preparing myself mentally to accompany Strife and his band once again. Only one thing was out of place, one problem that needed to be remedied.

"The cloak, Cloud."

Looking slightly deflated, his mouth twisted into a weak smile. "Sure thing," Cloud responded with a nod, even as he lifted his hands to unfasten it.

My eyes hardened as I saw his left hand.

"_And_ my glove."

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

Absolution Sky: Aw, I'm so happy! Getting a reviewer who can squeal happily in recognition of the game mechanics of my favorite FF game always makes me cackle in glee. I _had_ to include that bit about monsters leveling up with the characters, though… as far as I can recall, it's the only FF that did it (contrary to, say, 1 or 2 or 6 or 7 or 9 or 10, where you could go back to the first areas and wail all over the introductory monsters… those dumb fish on Balamb and the stinking T-Rexaurs in the forests just stayed freaking _hard_, dude! Unless you blind 'em. Then it's a whack-a-mole game.) I hope the wait for this newest chapter wasn't too intolerable, and… well, it was free of mesmorizes so that's a plus, neh:)

cheeky doggie: Stories like mine make you like the CLC coupling? It's reviewers like you who make me like writing them! Thanks so much! To answer your question concerning the unicorn monster things, those were mesmorizes – a rather common, painfully obtuse (and wonderful source of blades for gunblade renovation and/or sale to build your fortunes) and annoying monster in the Trabia area. Ixion didn't ever appear in FF8. And if you think behemoths showed up too much in KH… oh, just don't get me started on the freaking Deep Sea Research Center in FF8. Thirty. Freaking. Minutes. With. Tons. Of. Behemoths. Between. Save. Points. Glleeeeaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrgh. (burbles to death in her own saliva, leaving a random Org XIII member to sigh, shove her body away with the tip of a stylish boot, and slam his oversized tomahawk firmly against the gong to announce the arrival of the newest chapter)

Jade003: Heh heh. First off, thanks for the careful reading of the last chapter. The edit's been made – I actually was so out of it (re: alcohol deprived) that I missed that detail. Sheesh! Great catch. :) And as Leon's an asshat, I couldn't goad him into telling anyone anything about Trabia. Hence this chapter's character introduction. And that meteor? Egh. Damned spell's a_counterattack_, not just a final attack like it is in FFX. Hence why I freaking hate behemoths in FF8. Smack it with a sword? Meteor. Punch it in the face? Meteor. Shoot it with a gun? Meteor. Hit it with a Firaga? Meteor. So freaking repetitive! 'least until you figure out that smacking 100 silences onto Squall's status attack instantly kills its counterattack. And 100 blinds on Zell's status attack makes its physical attacks moot and pointless. Then it's just boring and time consuming. Anyway, hope you liked the newest chapter, thanks for reviewing the last one, and Cid is indeed the shit. :P

terracannon876: Yay, a review! (bubbly giggle) First, I'll start off by answering a question you had. I don't believe they necessarily weaken themselves – I believe they start off with their base stats and just ramp up in reflection of the party's average level. Magic of Hyne, if you wanna call it that. Congratulations on beating FF8 (such a satisfying ending, IMHO) and… don't'cha love that freaking insto-kill your GF thing? Gaw. Though meteor saving your butt? (grin) In my case it was usually Meltdown. I junctioned meteor to vitality all the time, and ultima was always tied to strength (or hp if holy couldn't max my hp out). (rubs head) Thanks again for reviewing, and hope you liked this newest chapter!

Melodious Flurry: I'm glad you found the last chapter so moving. Thanks for the review informing me that it was successful! (glomps her newest plushie) Seifer… so damned cute and misunderstood! Why do so many fanfics have to make him an asshat? (whines, bitches, moans) Anyway, thank you so much for the complimentary review, and here's to hoping this newest chapter delivered as well.

Li the Twilight Knight: Leon fetish… Eh heh. Squall is a not-so-secret fanatic undertaking of mine, mostly because (a) his personality gets butchered thoroughly on a regular basis and (b) the gunblade is anal-raped in fanfiction and is featured _shooting bullets_. Gaaaaah. I won't continue on that tangent, because I'll go on for 9 freaking pages. So anyway! Yeah, think Nomura could have been any more cheese-tastic with those names? Geh. Want to throttle. Ven is hawt (but the name makes me think 'ventilation' – too much time at work, or thinking about the water/land/air connection). And no need to sheepishly laugh – FF8's world was never given a name. It's just 'that place with all those freaking continents and monsters every-freaking-where.' Thanks much for the review!

hybrid2: Frightening how addicting some of those KH funnies are, neh? Anyway, on to the proper response to the review! Ahem. (shakes head) Sorry, trying to shake the brain into proper operation. Still deprived so far as beer's concerned. (pleading whine) Ahem. Sorry. Yeah, I was actually thinking of Selphie's friend at Trabia when I typed her. It would've been hilarious if it was Irvine, but I already rather slaughtered our favorite sniping booby-hunter in Squall's memories, chapter 10 (I think. It was one of 'em). Sorry that the chapter felt short – look forward to the Sora ones exploding in length. I'd make them all mammoth episodes, but I was determined to keep chapter length down for this fic to make writing it easier on my poor addled brain. Yeah, I failed miserably, but it was a good idea at the time! (simpers pathetically) Oh, thanks so much for your compliments on my snowfield! Glad it stuck, so to say. And hope you like the new chapter!

* * *

Artistic liberties taken with locations and Edge. After all, the city's placed on the 'edge' of the remains of Midgar, hence the unoriginal name (as stated in DoC). I always envision some of the towering structures that were the Mako reactors still standing, tall and proud, as monuments of the destruction that took place in the fight between AVALANCHE, Shinra and Sephiroth. And to be perfectly frank, I'm not going to torture myself by playing the game again to determine which reactor that should've been. If you wanna give me a correction/suggestion I'll happily make the edit. :)

(clears her throat) Ahem, ahem. Now for a brief interlude… (hums along with her 'sad writing mix' on her ipod… then realizes that she just introduced many a fangirl's fanatic obsession, one whose 'fleshing out' is going to have to be based entirely on FF7 and FF7:AC because, to be perfectly frank, FF7:DoC SUCKED GIANT DONKEY BALLS. C'mon, like they couldn't just let Hojo stay freaking dead. "I know, I've got a great idea! He's digitized brain material that's gonna be assimilated into the new game's nemesis! (puff) Bong hit! Woo!" Asstards. Like so badly she screamed in aggravation about craptastic game controls, stupid fucking dumb shit of a game with a lame-ass excuse for a plot and weak new characters, giving it the hell away so she couldn't be tempted to play this ass-fuck of a game ever again. Fujin says "RAGE!" Go read wikipedia instead of playing this waste of freaking programming. Ahem. Yes, humming. Even as the Ansem plushie blinks his beady eyes, shakes his head at the authoress, and doesn't bother saying a word before he slinks off to kick the stuffing out of one of the many Sora plushies laying around.)

(his opportunity granted, the Sephiroth plushie struts forward, strikes a fantastic 'I'm too sexy' pose and thrusts a hand into the air with a squeal of "SUBMIT!")


	62. Revelation

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 62  
The Gummi Expert – Revelation

I don't think there'd ever been a time in my life when I'd been more happy to see an inn.

And, coincidentally, I don't think there'd ever been a time in my life when I'd been more pissed off by the people who worked said inn.

See, it'd been a long walk to this place.

First off, the damned ruins we'd been spelunking in were infested to the gills with monsters. Not really tough monsters, but monsters nonetheless. My clothing, my spear, my hair, my goggles even were caked with monster goo and blood. Even before the elevator shaft I was swearing a blue streak, professing that if I ever saw another one of those three-winged face things Leon called 'buels' I was going to fucking murder the world.

Next, Vincent.

Now don't get me wrong – I was pleased as punch that we'd found the old vampire. Hell, life back at Hollow Bastion seemed almost empty without his peculiar brand of bland snark floating on the wind. Plus it was damned nice to have his ass around to hunt down Mopey the Wonder Spike when he'd go sit his butt down on a belfry's ceiling to whine about Sephiroth and the Planet and everything he'd ever conceived could ever in any way be connected to him and therefore be his fault. Vinny's ability to float around just as dexterously as Cloud always came in handy when we needed the blond idiot fetched so he could go smack something with his oversized sword.

But the fact that he was jumpy as fuck around our friend the Heartless, suspiciously staring at the little git instead of paying attention to the battles that were raging all around us, and after three fucking pot shots at one of those damned floaty things that looked like black and white manta rays with huge tails and light-em-up green spots all over their bellies (Leon called 'em gaylas – fucking retarded name if you ask me) he was out of ammo… argh. He was another goddamned liability to our already taxed party.

We had an all-but-worthless Heartless who'd lost all those spiffy weapons he'd had in Wonderland, capable of doing nothing but oozing into the floor and from time to time scratching wildly at stuff with his claws. And now we had an ammo-lacking Vincent.

Ain't no way in hell me or Cloud was gonna encourage him to unleash with any of those demons running around underneath his skin in such close quarters. Instead, we told him to stand back and let us take care of the mess.

So there were Cloud, Leon and myself flailing like mad against everything that decided that it was really damned hungry and that we'd make tasty morsels in those frozen ruins.

Don't get me going on the fucking elevator shaft. I had my fill going up over bottomless pits in Wonderland. And I had to do it again in this frozen wasteland remnant of a worthless planet. Cloud just did his dumb hoppa-hoppa I've got Mako shit from one wall to the other. Fucking Heartless just oozed up the wall like a splot on a rug or something. And then Leon, the only person I would've assumed would share my dilemma and perhaps show some damned sympathy, just closes his eyes for a few moments, sweeps his hand slowly while mouthing the words "draw float," and levitates his butt up to the surface.

At least Vincent was there. He took some freaking pity and swept me to the snowy surface.

Damned near scared the fucking begeezus out of me, but he got me to the surface.

And sure, while we weren't enclosed in cramped little tunnels anymore, we were in wide open plains that were under that eternally black sky, meaning anything could fly its happy ass up to meet us.

Dragon after dragon after mother fucking dragon.

I hate dragons.

Chaos does too, apparently.

At least Vincent has enough presence of mind to keep that fucking demonic thing under control enough so that we, his buddies, aren't swept up in the waves of destruction. Now granted the poor Heartless got blasted a half dozen times and has taken to hiding behind Cloud, Leon or myself when the winged bitch comes out to play, but oh well. A Vinny without ammunition's gonna use what he's got available, regardless of how fucked up it truly is.

So we'd come to that stupid little village we'd circumvented on our way to the ruins, beaten and bloody and not exactly enjoying our time frolicking in the snow anymore. Even Cloud, the freaking snow-bunny, was finally starting to shiver and bitch about the cold. How Leon was still capable of moving, what with his skin damned near frozen thanks to his lacking cover with that short sleeved jacket of his, is far beyond me.

Myself? Heh. I'm too tough to care 'bout no wussy thing like weather. A t-shirt does me just fine in heat, snow, darkness or light. Only pansies whine about that kind of thing.

Anyway, entering the town was no challenge. The gates couldn't stand up to much – we just pushed against them and they swung readily out of our ways. The bar that apparently normally would hold them shut was removed – guess someone was out and about. Probably looking for food or fuel for a fire, I suppose.

The little Heartless offered us a quaint little wave before flopping on his black bottom in the snow outside of those gates.

Guess he comprehended that he'd be a little less than welcome in the collection of establishments, given first off the condition of the planet and secondly the fact that he's a Heartless. Guy that used to be must've had some brains – even as an antennae-bearing Shadow, he has enough presence of mind to figure that one out.

Granting him a wave in return, I felt compelled to tell him that we'd make it short, ignoring Cloud's huffed "he can't understand you, Cid," and Vincent's quizzically raised brow.

We'd wandered around the miniscule village for a short time, watching as the few people that were out of the warmth provided by those miniscule houses stared at us moments before dashing off to the safety of their ramshackle homes.

Yeah, talk about a warm welcome.

Cloud was walking behind me with his head bowed, staring morosely at the ground, like he was wondering if it was something he'd done to make these people such crazed xenophobic bastards. Vincent veritably floated alongside the spiked warrior, his face predictably blank and his eyes sweeping cautiously around. And Leon… well, he had a look in his eyes that I couldn't bring myself to figure out.

It wasn't long from the time we'd entered the village until we'd located the largest building in the small conglomeration of homes, figuring it to be something of an inn owing to the stacks of barrels at its leeward side and the huge double doors. Looked like plenty of inns we'd seen back on the Planet.

Problem, though. Moment we'd opened the door, we'd found ourselves face to face with a rather large-boned woman wearing sorrowful rags that'd seen better days and a sour look on her face.

"Hey, ain't this an inn?" I'd questioned.

"Sure is, but we have no room for you," she'd shot right back.

And that brings us to our current conflict.

She was refusing to budge from her position, her hands planted solidly on the frame of her door, her plain face framed by its wavy dark hair made ugly by a very unattractive scowl.

"What'd'ya mean, no room for us?" I bellowed at the woman who stood at the doorway to the establishment we were trying to enter, shaking my fist threateningly into her very unimpressed face.

"Exactly what I said, sir," she steadfastly growled. "There's no room for you."

"You can't mean your rooms are filled to capacity," Leon very calmly offered from behind me.

"I mean that there's no room for you," she repeated.

"Oh, I see how it is," I snarled, my teeth grit and my voice a grumble in my throat. "Well, fuck this place then. There's gotta be another inn."

"Doubtful, Cid," Cloud oh-so-helpfully muttered from his place at Leon's side. Thanks, ass-tard.

"There is no other inn," the woman in front of me huffed even as she pried her fingers from the doorframe and crossed her arms before her ample chest. "This was built when we first started construction of this village to hold everyone until we could manage to level enough land for other houses."

The four of us looked at each other, gray, blue and crimson scarcely blinking.

"Can you believe this shit?" I opened, starting our would-be conference on the irritated woman's doorstep.

Heh. Just keep standing there all peeved off and bitter, bitch. You deserve it. I thumbed my nose at her just to amplify my enjoyment at her state of displeasure with us continuing to haunt her property.

"Yes," Vincent said with a shrug.

"Maybe they're xenophobes?" Cloud offered.

"No," Leon said with a clip of his head. "Not in this land."

"Then they shouldn't be so fucking high and mighty. It's not like we're Heartless here to tear 'em up," I grunted.

"Who's to say we're not?" Cloud supplied.

"Or those creatures the Heartless told me of. The remains of the body when the heart's taken away. 'Nobody.' They have no way to know that we're not something that's harmful to their livelihoods," said Leon.

"Nobodies? You mean those bitches the Cheshire Cat said were the duplicates left for Alice to fight to regain her sanity once we were done with the Heartless in Wonderland? What a crock of shit," I grunted.

"They have no way of knowing, like Leon said," Cloud muttered.

"Still, think they could give us the benefit of the doubt. It isn't like we've been razing the town from the moment we waltzed past that sorry excuse for a wall," I said with a snort.

Vincent shook his head. "These people are in no position to trust strangers. This land has been segregated from intruders for an untold measure of time."

"Seven years," Leon filled in. "They haven't seen anyone new in seven years. We're the first outsiders to enter this village."

Silence fell over all of us as the woman's voice suddenly intruded on our conversation.

Her voice was shaken as she whispered, "How do you know it's been that long?"

I looked from her to Leon and back to her, then cast my gaze at everyone else in our small gathering.

Cloud was looking at Leon with a quizzical and confused quality laying in his Mako eyes.

Vincent's eyes were slightly narrowed, knowledge swimming in them.

Huh. Rather interesting, if you ask me.

Clearing his throat, Leon simply shrugged and turned away from us all. "Irregardless of how I know, let's just move on."

"Hey, you were the one in favor of resting up and restocking our supplies," Cloud complained.

"And I, for one, agree with that," I grunted. "We're stayin' here. I don't care if we have to force our ways in, we're stayin' here."

"No reason to be so aggressive," Vincent supplied, his voice soft and steady. "Once your companion explains himself, we should find these people a touch more receptive."

Leon turned sharply on his heel, offering Vincent a glare that I'm certain would have burned him into a cinder if human eyeballs had that kind of power.

I stumbled slightly in the snow as I was pushed out of someone's way. Turning to shout, I found myself staring at that woman we'd seen in the fields on our way to those garish, demolished ruins we'd found our dusty friend in. Same outfit and everything. I was surprised she didn't reek to high heaven, especially if those were the only clothes she had.

Kinda like we did. Musty. The girls were gonna bitch up a storm when we got back if we didn't get some laundry done.

Anyway, that girl walked right over to the gunblader, disregarding his obvious discomfort and attempt to slowly backpedal away from her. Soon enough she had her hands on his shoulders and was standing on her tiptoes, staring hard at his face.

"Blessed Hyne," she whispered seconds later, her voice carrying over the still silence of the abandoned streets, "it can't be!"

"It can't be what?" I questioned, glancing at Cloud with an upraised brow. He just shrugged at me.

The young woman's voice shuddered, a sob hitching at the base of her throat. I found myself wondering if she was crying with sorrow or happiness, as her strained vocalization whimpered the word "Squall."

Leon pried her hands from his shoulders and calmly sidestepped her, walking back to us. Standing at Cloud's side, he shook his head. "Perhaps I was mistaken. We could make the gummi if we strike out hard and fast. Instead of fighting, we run."

"And leave our backs open for attack?" Vincent quietly surmised, his eyes hard and critical. "Doesn't strike me as a wise plan."

"Me neither," I grunted.

The persistent young lady came back over to us, her face starting to get puffy as tears flowed from her eyes and framed a cute little frown. "Squall, are you running away?"

Leon grit his teeth hard, glaring at her.

"Is that… why you're here? Is that why you're alive, and not dead with the rest of Balamb? Because you ran away?"

"What the hell're you babbling about, miss?" I asked, grabbing her shoulder and forcing her to face me.

Choking down a sob, she errantly pointed at Leon. "He's… he's here! He should be dead with the other SeeDs! If he's been alive all this time, then why hasn't he saved us? Why is our world still like this?"

"Leon… they know you?" Cloud quietly whispered, his eyes widening.

"Why!" the woman screamed, rounding on him despite my grip. "Is Trabia truly that unimportant to you? You left us to the missile attacks, you left us to rebuild without aid, and now we find out that you left us to those shadows! You-"

"Enough," the stalwart lady in the doorway shouted, marching away from her establishment to grab the hysterical young lady and draw her into her arms. "That's enough. He's not that kind of person. He wouldn't leave everyone to die."

Leon shuddered under the innkeeper's heavy gaze, seeming to shrink in on himself.

Seven years… dead with the rest of Balamb…?

Oh shit….

"It's my fault he wasn't here to help," I hurriedly growled. "I picked his ass up and shuttled him off to Traverse Town, 'cause I didn't think anything would be left of this world."

Sure enough, everyone shut up at that.

Taking a deep breath, I shrugged. "He was the last guy standing. Wasn't gonna make it anyway, if you ask me. He had nowhere to escape to – the place was getting completely swallowed up."

"So… there's no way you could have helped?" the young woman questioned, turning her gaze back towards Leon.

"He wasn't anywhere close to this place," I stated blandly at the back of her head. "Otherwise, knowing this moron, he would've tried his best to get here and help, come hell or high water."

The thick-boned lady who'd stood between us and rest finally smiled, her face lighting up. "Well, that settles it. Squall, you and these strange friends of yours are welcome to what we have."

"You're going to help us now that you're here, aren't you?" the younger woman asked.

Shoulders slumping, Leon quietly sighed. "I'm not sure if there's anything I can do."

"Regardless, you're welcome. You did what you could before the shadows came – you defeated the sorceress and saved us all, after all. Come in and make yourselves comfortable," my new best friend welcomed warmly.

"Thanks," I quickly offered, stomping forward and grabbing the leather-clad dumbass by his arm. "Get moving, Leon," I huffed, dragging him towards the door to the inn.

He held me in place for the barest hint of a second, casting his look to the young lady who'd first identified him. "I'm sorry… I couldn't save Selphie. She was swallowed in darkness before I could reach her."

She stiffened before offering him a cool smile and a shake of her head. "You broke your promise. You didn't look after her like you said you would after the missile strikes."

I hauled him away from the woman as she quietly cried, her voice crackling as she called him a bastard and him offering his solemn apologies for failing this girl's apparent best friend.

Well… what'd'ya know. Never thought that any part of a world would remain once the Heartless got their grimy claws into it.

Leading Leon to Cloud, I veritably shoved the idiot gunblader into my blond buddy's arms. "Take him to a room."

"Right," Cloud readily complied, ushering Leon away with soft whispers and comforting touches.

With a sigh, I made my way to one of the sporadically placed tables that littered the rather large room that stood just beyond the large door the owner of this building had just let us pass through. Flopping down in one of the hard and roughly constructed peg-legged chairs, I grunted as I yanked my crumpled cigarette pack from my back pocket and shook a single stick free.

"That's certainly an interesting development," Vincent offered with a slightly raised brow even as he wandered to the fireplace and lifted a single thin twig from the wood pile that was situated next to it, carefully lighting its tip in the raging flames that danced within the brick construct that granted the ramshackle building its warmth.

Leaning forward to suck the heat from the offered flaming stick through the tip of my cigarette, I huffed loudly through my nose even as the source of my nicotine fix finally took and glorious warm smoke filled my lungs. "Wha?" I managed after exhaling a long, satisfied breath. "Cloud and Leon?"

"Cloud," Vincent replied.

"Been that way for awhile, Vinny. Sure miss a lot when you're scampering around in ruins rather than finding your way back to the party, you know?" I said with a smirk. "Hell, Tifa, Barrett and Red found their ways to us. Only fucktards missing are you and that moron Shinra-goon Reeve."

He hummed quietly in the back of his throat, looking intently into the fireplace and watching the flames dance in its confines. "So Cloud has found someone to share his burdens."

"And someone to help when the going gets tough. Gets comfort and the opportunity to feel useful from time to time." I flicked the ash that was beginning to form at my cigarette's tip onto an abandoned cup saucer that was conveniently left to gather dust on the table I'd seated myself at. "Good for both of them. Both're so fucked up they need the support. And both're so fucked up only someone equally disturbed could understand and know what kind of support to offer, you gather?"

With a nod, Vincent silently agreed.

"Just never fucking thought a part of a world could live," I muttered to myself, joining my red-cloaked friend in the fun of staring into flames. "This's gotta be breaking Leon apart inside."

"You insist on calling Mr. Leonhart 'Leon.' Why?" Vincent murmured.

"Because when I hauled his ass off this rock, he griped that Squall was dead and he was Leon now. He's killed off his old identity with his world."

Letting his burning crimson eyes drift shut, my friend sighed. "Perhaps with the rediscovery of his world's life, that old persona lives again. That could be a most disastrous proposition."

"Come again?" I questioned.

Prying his dark lashes apart, he settled a hard, firm gaze on my face that damned near made me squirm with discomfort. "This is a world of perfect balance. The apathy of people fails to call the shadows that swallow hearts. The lacking light of the remnant of this world doesn't call any further darkness. Enough light remains to let these people live – no more, no less. That light, the desires and heart-felt drive of people, is diminished to mere survivalist drive. Any change in the direction of that light could spell disaster."

At that moment, as if to amplify Vincent's point, a pair of golden eyes mixed liberally with aquamarine coloration appeared in the darkest corner of the inn we'd just entered, panic dancing in their depths.

I bit harshly onto my cigarette's filter. "Don't tell me. Us comin' here upset that balance."

The little antennae-bearing head I could barely distinguish from the rest of the shadows solemnly nodded.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

Review replies:

cheeky doggie: XD Yay, review! Heh heh.

Jade003: … Damn you! (points with shaky finger) No catching on! No! (grin) Actually, fantastic. I'm glad someone caught it. As for the results, you'll have to see. To answer your Final Fantasy VIII questions, do you have a LiveJournal account? I can easily answer anything there. In fact, I responded there with what you asked in the review. Any further questions can be addressed there. :) Otherwise I'll spend pages responding here. (sheepish grin) Glad you enjoyed the chapter!

me-obviously: Well, while I can guarantee that the chapters have not decreased in length any, I'm sorry that they're a bit on the light side. By the way, you made me snigger like a madwoman about your 'Oh yeah. Vinnie was a Turk.' Heh heh! I was rather hoping that I got Vincent in character… and that bit at the end really couldn't be avoided. After all, I've got to work Cloud into his new wardrobe, neh? Rambling is quite alright! I do it myself with regularity. Anyway, do hope this update came soon enough for you, and hope it's adequate.

Melodious Flurry: Aw, I broke your brain? (takes a moment to dance like an inebriated jackass in celebration) Huzzah! Oh, I mean, I'm so sorry. Cough, cough. Anyway, glad you enjoyed Vincent's introduction! And thanks much for the new virtual plushies. New chapter delivered – hope it meets your expectations!

Kitty Kyinsky: (happy grin) I'm glad that you approve of the silliness. It's been in the works in my brain for so long, I was happy to finally get it out. And yeah, it rather is a pity that it had to be Vincent, neh? I was hoping for the other guy that's yet to show, but he's scheduled for the 2nd to last world on this side of the story. Feh. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this newest chapter!

Li the Twilight Knight: Well, I'm glad Vincent was so readily identified. :) And you'd be shocked how many people profess that it does (someone actually tried to say that it shows gunblades firing projectiles in the opening FMVs – I told them to step themselves through the opening sequence and gave them links to sites where they could download it to prove it doesn't. Feh. You don't mess with someone deranged enough to have all the triple triad cards, everything maxed at level 100 and possess over 90 phoenix pinions). As for DoC… I guess it's a matter of opinion. I'm kinda with the vast majority on that one, which is surprising seeing as how I'm such a stout defender of the 'worst Final Fantasy ever' according to many US players. Thanks much for the love, and here's hoping that it's continuing! Thanks for reviewing!

terracannon876: Even unconstructive reviews are highly revered! Thank much! As per Vincent's appearance… that ratty black undergarment he glooms about in? (cackle) I'm glad you're happy that I brought Vincent in (and not as a corpse). Have to disagree about Reeve, though – for a grown man to build Cait Siths (in multitudes, as proven by the fact that a replacement comes after collapsing the black materia in, like, 90 seconds (exaggeration, I know) and says 'yo!') he can't be very stable. XD Anyway, thanks for continuing to read, and hope it continues to please!

scarlettHuntress: Quite alright, not reviewing chapter 60. :) You reviewed 61! Thanks! Vinny making Cloud sad? Heh. Vice versa, I'd almost say. :P Thanks for R&R, and hope you liked this chapter.

Siavahda: I'm glad you like the concept behind this story, and am certainly hoping that you decide to stick with it 'till the end. Thanks much for the review!

hybrid2: Oh ho, snerking at imagined imagery of the fate of our FF party, eh? Heh heh. Share some of those images some time, yes? (grin) I don't mind the demands. This story _will_ wrap up someday (hopefully soon, as I've made the fateful decision to lop a completely filler world from the story. That's right, oh readers of mine – 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' has been nixed, despite my incredible desire to write Sora and company into it. It'd make the story much longer than I desire though. Therefore, if I'm going to even consider writing that world, it'd be as a side-story. I want this damned thing to wrap up this century) and… well, thanks for the compliment on my writing quality. I hope you continue to enjoy it!

ThienCatVu: Heh heh. I kind of figured it out after reading that 41 was your favorite chapter. It was one of those 'I wonder…?' moments until you verified it. And the "Hurry Squall!" line was indeed from the Dollett mission – it's Quistis yelling at him to get onto the Swordfish after he, Seifer and Zell exit the transport, right before their mission briefing from Xu. (grin) Anyway! Glad you're enjoying the story – part of the reason I've been writing it is to expound on Leon's character, bringing out that essential 'Squallness' that makes him complete. So many people simply butcher the hell out of his character that I'm left screaming in misery and yanking out my hair by the roots (exaggeration, but you get my point). Hopefully this Trabia segment met with your satisfaction! And thanks so much for the review. (Devour? Evil? Ha! It's fun-fun happy time with munchies! (demented cackle) Nothing evil about that.)

* * *

BEER!!!! (chug)

(the Ansem plushie stares at the authoress, shaking his head with remorse before resuming his sport of kicking the stuffing out of the Sephiroth plushie who stole his line last chapter. With a squeal of delight, he pelvic-thrusts while standing atop his plushie-opponent's prone body, screaming "SUBMIT!")


	63. Keyblade

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories

Before you read this chapter, I HIGHLY recommend you read chapter 62.5 (the secret chapter). It was originally intended to fit between chapters 63 and 64, but after I completed both 63 and 63.5 (as originally written) I realized that it is more appropriate placed prior to this chapter. So sorry you had to wait for the 'other half' of 62, but that's just how it goes at times.

Remove all spaces (they're located after all slashes and dots).

www. angelfire. com/ ca/ shard2/ wsama/ bcd62-5. html

While it IS a smut chapter, it's also one of the lightest smut chapters I've ever written (as in not that much occurs – so far as I'm concerned, it doesn't even _qualify_ as smut) AND does make a stupendous effort to fix some of the characterization errors I've made. Also, it's relatively important to get where Leon's bend is going to be coming from for chapters to come. In other words, it's developmentally a VERY important chapter. But it's probably too gratuitous for fanfiction. net, if you garner my meaning.

And sorry it took so long to post this, but I've been working 12 hour days. So when you only have 3 hours to yourself every day because the rest of that time's spent sleeping and commuting to and from work, fics don't get much love.

If you REALLY want to see more love of fics from me, drop me a message in the fanfiction demands thread on my livejournal, 'kay? I'll keep track of that, as much if not more than any other account. It's easier because it pings my email account with regularity. Heh heh. (for the link, see my author's page)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 63  
The Heartless – Keyblade

I'd watched without concern as my companions had headed through the tall and foreboding gates that segregated the tiny village of survivors from the rest of their decimated planet's lands. I had no longing to follow them – I knew my presence would cause nothing but hardship on my friends and panic in the hearts of those people who still managed to reside in the shattered remnants that still existed beyond the reach of darkness.

As they went within the city's confines to rest and recuperate, I busied myself with surveying the lands, my mind not at all on what my eyes were taking in.

I couldn't truly care about the glistening pure snow, the sparkling stars in the black sky, the slowly moving clouds that obscured the constellations, the distant crunching of powder under monstrous feet.

I cared about the hauntingly close thumping of my lost heart, calling desperately for me from the darkness that had it ensnared.

I'd run from the darkness that stole it. I'd fled from the threat of absolution promised by the depthless pitch of Kingdom Hearts. That land of completeness, of either total darkness or total light depending on what its core was constructed of, would have no opportunity to absorb what was left of me.

I'd physically escaped with what tiny remnants remain of my frame. But I'd abandoned my heart.

I'd had no chance to dream of laying my eyes upon it much less my claws while remaining a resident of the dark Kingdom. Hence why I came here – the land of light, the hearts of those who dwelled in it, the power of ideological hope and dreams, held promise that the truth, the reality, the overwhelming crushing force of darkness could not contain within its folds.

I was positive that here, on this side of the doors, I would find a path to draw my heart from darkness and return it to light. Through the Keyblade. Through the link that could either open or shut all doors to darkness and light. Through its Master.

Sora.

I watched with what I could only long to be a sigh seated upon nonexistent lips, staring as those waves of darkness that constituted the never ending ocean of the End of the World lapped ever closer.

Was it my imagination, or were they actually approaching…?

I burst to my feet as I witnessed what I was fearing – golden eyes floated in that ocean.

As wave after wave struck the powder of the white land, Neo-Shadows and Shadows oozed free and scampered through the thick snow.

Without a second thought, I fled into the village.

The streets were surprisingly empty as I made my way through the town, looking wildly about myself for any clue as to where my companions might be situated.

It didn't take me long to find them – the largest building in town was where they were holed up. One of the few buildings that actually still had light pouring from its miniscule windows. Peeking inside, I saw Cid and that new stranger in red seated at a sporadically placed little table, the blond sucking angrily on a cigarette and the strange black-haired man looking at him with those glowing crimson eyes, his face bland.

Ducking away from the window, I ran to the door and stared ponderously at the knob.

Turning that would have been a feat of incredible stupidity.

Instead, I opted for the 'natural,' more 'Shadowy' solution. With little effort I seeped through the tiny sliver of space that existed between the bottom of the door and the floor proper.

I couldn't help but repress a desperate sob as my antennae drooped.

"Come again?" Cid's voice questioned with crystalline clarity.

The dark-haired man muttered in reply, "this is a world of perfect balance. The apathy of people fails to call the shadows that swallow hearts. The lacking light of the remnant of this world doesn't call any further darkness. Enough light remains to let these people live – no more, no less. That light, the desires and heart-felt drive of people, is diminished to mere survivalist drive. Any change in the direction of that light could spell disaster."

I shivered as my sharp senses detected the skittering of my brethren, not so far off as I would have liked.

"Don't tell me," Cid grumbled, his eyes firmly resting on me.

Oh.

Guess I'd forgotten to stay inconspicuous. Looking at myself briefly, I mentally cursed the fact that I had indeed gone three-dimensional and had been staring directly at them while wringing my clawed hands.

"Us comin' here upset that balance," Cid finally finished.

I tried to respond. I tried to tell him that yes, we indeed had. To my somber realization and buried delight, no voice fled my being – instead I settled for a solemn nod.

"Shit," Cid bit harshly.

Shaking my head, I waved my hands at him before running out of the inn, returning to the outside world the way I'd left it.

My feet rapidly carried me through the snow, making soft piff-paffs as I ran with every ounce of speed I could muster.

As scared as I was for myself, throwing the remnants of my existence towards that unstoppable conglomeration of darkness and power that I could not defy, I was more scared for my companions.

I was more scared for Leon.

Those buried tears I'd seen in his eyes when we'd first landed on this world….

Those reckless decisions he'd been making ever since we'd struck forth from the gummi….

It was obvious whose heart had called the Heartless.

He cared for this world.

He cried for this world.

And as I'd promised myself, if Kingdom Hearts dared to encroach on these lands while I was here, I'd stop it.

I'd find a way.

For him and all of my companions.

They'd done so much for me. They'd shown me unconditional friendship. They'd looked past the Shadow's exterior and seen the tether to my heart and my desire to regain it. They'd dedicated themselves to helping me find the Keyblade Master without regard to themselves and their own desires.

They were… my friends. And I would let nothing happen to them.

It was a pitifully short run to the shore of the approaching sea of shadows. It was too short of a time for me to have traveled from the inn to the edge of a massive, unending wave of my brethren.

Staring with resolve into that pitch-black horizon, I set my eyes upon the door that was fully opened. I stared into the black depths of Kingdom Hearts itself.

The throbbing of my heart, its terror compiled with its resolve to save my friends and this world thundering painfully, resonated throughout my entire frame.

The cold steel of a hilt formed in my clawed hand.

Without another moment's hesitation, I charged towards that door, the silver shaft of the key-shaped sword shining with its own brilliant light to lead my way.

_-to be continued-_

Review replies:

Thien: Woo, shortened your fanfiction name, eh? Heh. Anyway, on to the review reply. Thanks much, first and foremost, for reading and reviewing! It's very highly appreciated. I'm glad that the Trabia segment pleased you. And no worries – I certainly don't buy the 'everyone's from the same place' thing they presented in KH, either, and every piece of writing I've devised reflects that. You won't see marvelously stupid explanations as to how Leon got his face butchered by Heartless/Nobodies/Goombas/PuPus-displaced-from-Kingdom-Hearts/blahblahblah (Seifer all the way, dude) – nah, you'll just see marvelously stupid explanations as to how the FF7 and FF8 worlds interrelate and how Radiant Garden plays into the equation. And also, glad you enjoyed the emphasizing of the 'promise' factor. More Squall-ness confirmed, as I hate the butchering of Squall's characterization and fight manically to keep Leon and Squall the same freaking person (and heavily tied to FF8). Rambling much now done – hope you enjoyed this chapter!

cheeky doggie: I'm very happy that you're pleased with Cid. He's my favorite character to type, actually, and I'm glad I'm not the only person who derives pleasure from writing/reading him ranting his fool head off. Thanks for continuing to read, and hope that a few of your questions are… well, kinda answered. They will be shortly if not yet. Guaranteed!

me-obviously: Thanks so much for the compliments on Cid! I heart that guy. And damn it all, he'll let the censored demon hear everything he wants it to! censored stupid Chaos. Show 'him a thing or two with Venus Gospel up his stinkin' censored! Ha! (eh, sorry. Couldn't help it) To answer your question, the girl with the Selphie connection is the girl who' Selphie's best friend from Trabia Garden. You meet her in FF8 when you go to Trabia after the missile strike. She's also the girl you can win the Selphie card from in a righteous game of Triple Triad or four. Glad you enjoyed the last chapter, and hope you liked this one.

terracannon876: Awww, what makes you say that your favorite group is screwed? Wait… you mean that Sora and company aren't your favorite group? The hell! (stomps around) And I work so hard to make them lovable and… and… and lovable! Like in the game! Crap. Well, eh… I still say that Reeve's a freaking psychopath. Especially after seeing official art of him running around with his Cait Sith at his feet and its megaphone in his hand. (snerk)

Jade003: Oh, so you want to be in the room with Cloud and Leon, eh? Wish granted. The link's at the beginning of the chapter an' stuff. And to answer another question for you – I don't intend for Sephiroth to show at all. But Cloud angst will occur (and has occurred in the special secret chapter 62.5). Oh yes, it will occur. Anyway, happy to answer a question with this chapter – and hopefully not creating too many more. Thanks for pointing at my obvious plot device. (huff, smirk) Hope you're still enjoying the story! C'mon… let plushie Cloud look. He doesn't have nearly enough complexes. (snerk)

Li the Twilight Knight: Aw, c'mon! There's an end. Promise! Anyway… the fate of Trabia remains to be seen (mwa ha ha) and Vincent's job is to be analytical, dammit! He's not a stuffing-headed plush! Heh. Glad you liked the chapter (even though my plushies disturb you), and hope you enjoyed this one as well.

Melodious Flurry: (sends over Aerith plushie with a phoenix down) Will keep it up! Thanks much for the review!

scarlettHuntress: Glad you enjoyed, and hope you like the newest chapter. So happy you're sticking with the story!

hybrid2: You know, that's a marvelous bit of imagery you've got started there… maybe I'll have to write that in a chapter relatively soon. Everyone actually working together… hmmm… Oh, on to the review (provided my sickness-stricken mind can actually make my fingers move in the correct patterns across my keyboard to make anything legible). I'm glad you're enjoying the story still, and hey! You just realized why Cid's there? Mwa ha ha! He's got to be. Exactly. Sora would NEVER be capable of handling this bunch. 'fact is, he'd probably break into tears the moment he found out what his hero Leon really has going on behind those vacant blue eyeballs of his. And feel free to finish that thought. I find it entertaining. (grin)

Rosedy White: Thank you so much for taking the time to read and review a story that's reached this magnitude in chapters and length! It means a lot. And I'm happy that you enjoy my characterizations – that, in fact, is one of the things I strive to get as close to decent as possible (while my grammar, my plots, my spelling and my brain all go to hell). Thanks so much for the alerts and faves, and to hope that this chapter met with your expectations!

Brennend: You know, the thought of people trying to pat Riku's head bowled me over. I was giggling uncontrollably about that for quite some time. Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing! Once more I'm stunned that people are actually taking the time to read and review a story of this monstrous length from beginning to end. You do flatter me! As for Sora and Riku's groups meeting up… well, the story does have to have an end, neh? All I can say is stay tuned – and thanks again for reviewing!

Shadow Cat17: Holy smokes! You're back! Wow, it's been awhile… 2 days? Wow, that's some dedication! Glad you're still enjoying the story, and I'm trying to update as often as possible but real life usually gets in the way. As for how long this story's going to be, I don't have a set number of chapters, but… Sora's going to finish this movie, our angst-group is going through one Disney movie, and then the conclusion world. And that's it! So relatively soon. Hope that clears things up! (yeah, I know. Clear as mud.)

Renkin-chan: Ah hah hah. Questions about the games themselves? Please, oh please, if you have a livejournal account, address them there (my link's in my author's profile). I will then type pages upon pages about what you need to accomplish what you need to accomplish! (just don't ask me shit about FF7 – I haven't played that game since early 2003, and have no aspirations to play it again. I'm too much of a FF8 whore to bother with it (I heart Squall. And Seifer. And Zell. And Irvine. And Selphie. Rinoa needs to die for being a whiny little shit). I've written a bit about how to obtain Ultima Weapon and Final Form (including where to most easily level up that form) in KH2 there for you! Anyway, on to the review proper. Two days? Holy smokes! That is dedication – I understand why your eyeballs are calling for ritualistic suicide. Thanks so much for reading I, and thank you for your praise! Hope you stick with it until the end!

DanteMoon: Double take city here! I'm seeing people I haven't seen in awhile! Thanks for affirming that you're still reading and enjoying this story, and hope this chapter also met with your expectations.

dareetel: God, I'm so appreciative of your PMs. Thank you so much for your FF7 expertise, and here's to trying to get Cloud's characterization more accurate! Hopefully you'll be pleased with the secret chapter and the way I'm molding him now. If not… well, give me time (and more advise is very, very welcome). These guys need to development, as does my ability to characterize him correctly as an author. Thanks again for your assistance, and I certainly hope that the secret chapter did some (or, hopefully most) of the corrections that you spotted! (now I've got to get on Skewed and hack at that sucker. Heh heh.)

Woo. (wipes her brow) Sickness and 12 hour days really kicks a girl's ass, ya know. Anyway, time to gear up for the Sora chapter that's about to come! (as she breaks out a case of Michalobe and her copy of 'The Black Cauldron,' the Ansem plushie laughs mockingly at her before stomping firmly on the 'review reply' button and bellowing 'SUBMIT!')


	64. Fairies

(blows dust off the top of BCD) Almost successfully forgot about this thing…

Those of you who are happy to see it, thank Thien. She yelled at me on deviantart and continually prodded me on livejournal. Fires under my arse motivate me to do stuff. As do reviews… but I fell through on those last time. Sorry! Work drove me away into a blissful land of intoxication. And I needed to restock on beer before I tackled this thing again. Which gave me time to forget about it. Until I got yelled at for it. And remembered that Thien's birthday was practically here (and by the time this got posted, long since passed), and I need to reciprocate the absolutely awesome birthday present she drew me at deviantart.

As stated in the last Sora chapter we'd had, these things are going to get a bit hefty to expedite Sora's journey through this world. Sooo….

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts or The Black Cauldron. Don't sue; I'm simply an E6 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. :) For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 64  
The Keyblade Master – Faeries

With a groan, I trudged along after the fuzzy, bouncing brown fuzzy creature I'd come to know as Gurgi. We'd barely been walking an hour, but in the company of the crass boy Taran, it'd already seemed like days.

At least the girl, who I'd come to find out was named Eilonwy, was good company. She seemed at times just as disgusted as myself in Taran's professions of his superiority to all simply because he had a magical sword.

But then again, she was becoming quickly tired of the tirades between myself and the assistant pig keeper. Our constant comparisons of our might, our deeds and the prowess of our weapons seemed to be getting on her nerves.

I blame Taran. After all, he wouldn't back down in the face of inevitable defeat. I am the Keyblade Master, for crying out loud! Known throughout the worlds! Defeater of the Heartless, closer of the doors, destined one to bring Light back to us all. He was just a pig keeper with a mystic sword he'd stumbled across in someone's burial chamber who couldn't even keep his hands on his pig, Hen Wen. He was nothing but a grave-robbing peasant, his pig being more impressive than him owing to the fact that Hen Wen could apparently see visions of the future!

Now the pig I can respect. Even if the profession of her oracular abilities came from her keeper, I could believe that and find awe in it. But the wielder of the supposedly mystic sword that he'd found on a dusty coffin? No respect or awe for him. Ever.

What can I say? His attitude concerning himself and his delusional grandeur brought out the competitive streak in me! It was almost like things had been with Riku… except that I didn't in any sense like this kid. Really, his immaturity and arrogance grated on me constantly.

Donald had just chuckled when I'd groused to him about our company, whispering in his gravely voice to Goofy that my problem with Taran was that we were too alike to like one another.

I'd swatted at the duck, only to be reprimanded by Princess Eilonwy for my immaturity.

After that, I'd sulked with my arms crossed over my chest and what I fear might have been a pout on my face for quite some time.

To make things worse, Taran had smirked at me.

My mind viciously snarled at him, 'Oh, just you wait. I'll wipe that smirk right off your face with the business end of my keyblade, if I have anything to say about it. Magic sword or not.' But my lips remained pressed together, my eyes simply pouring their disdain in my voice's place.

I was dragged out of my angry thoughts as we came to a pond and Gurgi suddenly stopped his rapid and anxious forward march.

Pointing to the soft ground, he happily professed, "See, master? Piggy's footsteps. No lie."

I squinted in the dismal lighting of the early evening that had fallen even as Taran strode forward and squatted by the pond, staring at the ground and wiping his hand lightly over the dirt. "Oh, good," he merrily professed. "They look fresh."

"Told you Gurgi wasn't lying," I huffed with my arms crossed tightly.

Eilonwy smiled and nodded. "Sora's correct, you know. It was wrong of you and Fflewddur to doubt him."

"Oh come now, Eilonwy," Fflewddur began, his voice colored as his cheeks as he spoke.

"How could we instantly trust him?" Taran jumped in at Fflewddur's heels, his eyebrows knitted over his narrowed brown eyes.

As they began to argue, I cast my gaze to Gurgi to spot him crossing over the stepping stones that created a perilous but short pathway over the pond we were at.

"What the heck?" I quietly professed as the stones sank after Gurgi leapt from each one.

"You know," Goofy began, scratching his head behind his cap. "Somethin' about this just doesn't seem right."

Spinning around in circles, Gurgi watched as every stone other than the one he was on sank into the pond. Suddenly his rock started spinning rapidly Desperation lighting his voice, he grated out, "Oh master. Master!"

"Gurgi!" I yelled, instantly bolting to the edge of the pond, Goofy's quick hand grabbing my hoodie as I almost lost my footing and preventing me from plunging face first into the pond. I stared with horror as a huge vortex formed, sucking the poor creature into the water.

"Sora, help!" Gurgi cried, reaching desperately for my hand even as I lunged for him, my sudden movement shaking me free of Goofy's grasp.

"Sora!" Goofy shouted behind me even as I grappled for Gurgi's hand, trying to wrench him from the vortex.

I yelped as I lost my footing, even as my hand connected with Gurgi's fingers and held on tight. Water washed over my face and my head as I was swiftly drawn towards the vortex's center.

Faintly I heard Goofy and Donald yelling my name. I almost imagined I heard Taran, Eilonwy and Fflewdur. But the bubbling and rushing of water was dominating my senses, drowning out all but the maddening whirl of promised death. I could see nothing but bubbles and whipped sediment, the dirt in that deep water stinging my eyes even as I lost my breath and felt all the oxygen in my lungs getting stripped away. My shouts for help swallowed by water, I struggled until my might left my body and I felt myself sinking without any means of escape.

Consciousness nearly left my body even as I felt myself slamming onto a hard, rocky surface, water flying from my lips and dry air racing into my lungs as I gasped for breath. A few moments later, I was buried underneath bodies – the first one feathery, the next fuzzy, and then the rest heavy and crushing. My lungs, too long bereft of air, couldn't bring themselves to evacuate some of what they were holding desperately on to for the yelp I was longing to utter to form. So instead, I suffered in silence under the mountain of bodies that had buried me.

I stilled, almost not daring to breath, as I heard the flutter of wings and soft childish voices. One of them asked how 'they' got here, another laughed that 'Old Doli's' whirlpool broke again and that it bet 'they' wake up soon.

Trying to shove the feathers in my face out of the way, I barely caught a glimpse of something tiny, pink and glowing in the distance. Then I heard a tiny little girl's voice whisper, "We better tell King Eidellig." That girl was quickly reprimanded by a little boy's voice shouting, "No, silly. You know we're not supposed to be up here."

My eyes widened as I stared at the glowing little dots of light as they continued to talk at one another.

The little girl's voice whimpered, "Uh-oh. We're all going to be in trouble."

Then the boy's voice piped up merrily, stating, "Not me."

I spotted flashes of blue, then the blue, orange and green lights I'd barely been able to make out earlier vanished! A moment later, the girl's voice whimpered, "Me either," and I heard little wings beating rapidly.

Then I definitely saw it. A fairy! A little pink fairy girl!

I struggled vainly to get out from under my capturers. "Guys… mmph. Get off!" I growled as ferociously as I could.

Donald groaned and stirred. "Get up, you big palooka!" he wheezed moments later.

A chuckle and a "Gawrsh," were our responses. "Sorry, fellas," Goofy qualified a moment later. "I'm kinda trapped, too."

"Oh, my head," Eilonwy whined a few moments later, stirring and, from what I could deduce, getting up. My burden eased a bit.

With grunts and growls and a cacophony of whines and grouses, the entire pile of us got untangled until I was finally able to pry myself from the stone I had been firmly pressed into.

"Shucks, Sora! Are you alright?" Goofy helpfully asked even as he lent me a hand in getting to my feet.

"Yeah," I quietly responded, dusting off my skinned knees. "Not the first time it's happened, you know."

Donald straightened his bill with a grunt. "Well, where in the heck are we?" he grumbled, swinging his head violently from the left to the right as he took in the cave.

"Quiet, quiet! Gurgi's sharp ears hear voices!"

We all fell silent. Sure enough, I heard them too.

"Grab that pole!" an elderly voice shouted with panic lacing his tone. Moments later, a more round, cheerful yet panicked voice replied, "Uh, I got it."

"Over here," I whispered, staring to crawl towards the direction the voices were coming from.

Once I'd reached the small outcrop of rocks that hid whoever it was from us, I slithered up its tiny height and stared with disbelief in my eyes. More fairies!

A yellow fairy with an impressive white beard and an elderly red fairy with a white hat and a full gray beard were fighting a falling structure made of lily pads, sticks and vines that seemed to be some sort of water fountain. It was a battle they were rapidly losing.

"Oh, aren't you all darling?" Eilonwy giggled from behind my ear, eliciting a startled yelp and a ducking of the head from me. Taran, annoyance that he was, laughed at me.

The red fairy turned his head, stared at us, and stammered, "Uh, hello. I'm King Eidellig of the Fairfolk."

"Fairfolk?" I stammered right back, staring with huge eyes. "Woah!"

"Wow! Look, Donald. Real fairies!" Goofy breathed from his station behind us all.

The yellow fairy, his temper flaring, released the vines he was holding to gesture wildly, shouting, "how the blazes did they-"

He was keenly interrupted by the structure he was trying to battle falling on top of himself and the king.

From under the leaves, we heard the two fairies verbally duke it out. "I thought I told you to fix the whirlpool," King Eidellig lambasted, to which the yellow fairy, who I could only assume was Doli from the conversation I'd heard the childishly-voiced persons earlier were having, groused, "I fixed it. I did fix it! It was perfect!"

As the red-colored King tossed the leaf he was buried under aside, he whispered, Evidently not completely perfect. It's supposed to keep them out."

We watched, some of us amused and others confused, as Doli wrung his hat out and the king bashfully turned his attention back towards us. "Uh, can I be of any service?"

Meanwhile, Doli marched around, grumbling, "Is everything that happens around here my fault?"

I held my forehead, trying not to laugh.

"Are you on a friendly visit?" King Eidellig asked politely.

"Well, yeah," Goofy answered with a big smile on his face.

Doli, not at all bothering to listen to anything but his own ranting, snarled, "And I suppose it's my fault the pig's here too!"

"Hen Wen?" Taran and I simultaneously shouted.

We glared at one another for a moment, even as the red fairy King brightened, merrily asking, "Oh, she's your pig?"

"Oh, good! One less thing for old Doli to worry about," the old yellow fairy growled as he began to fly off. As he did, the cavern filled with tiny multi-colored lights.

Fairies were appearing left and right, until we were completely surrounded! My eyes widened with nearly giddy awe as I took in the sight, staring as tiny people on translucent wings surrounded us and stared in like amazement. "Woah. Donald, can you believe this?"

"Uh uh," the duck breathed, shaking his head slowly as his eyes, wide as mine were, stared with unabashed wonder.

The magic quickly came to an end as Gurgi snatched a fairy out of the air, only to gawk as it vanished from his grasp. The other fairies started blinking away in puffs of soft blue light.

"Gurgi!" I sighed, shaking my head.

Looking at me with large eyes, Gurgi sniffed, even as Doli's voice roared from down a tunnel, "Watch it. Watch it!"

Seconds later, we were nearly bowled over by a merry pink pig.

"Oh, Hen! Thank goodness you're-" Taran began, interrupted cleanly as he was veritably pounced by the pig and his face was lavished with slobbery kisses.

"So, that's the oracular pig?" I questioned, crossing my arms and looking at her apprehensively. "Doesn't look too impressive."

"Now Sora, you of all people should know you can't judge someone by how they look," Goofy replied, slapping his large hand solidly onto my shoulder.

"Yeah. After all, you don't look much like a Keyblade Master," Donald sneered, chuckling wickedly.

"Oh, come on!" I huffed. I couldn't help but grin, even amongst everyone's laughter.

"Tell me," the fairy King stated as he flew to Flewddur, "Is the burning and killing still going on up there?"

"You refer to that-that-that-that… joke on humanity, the Horned King," Flewddur nervously replied.

"Will no one ever stand up to him?" King Eidellig sorrowfully questioned.

"Stand up to him? Ha!" Flewddur professed. "Now that he has the service of not only his army but strange shadow beasts, who would dare?"

"We would," I replied, my eyes instantly hard. "Those shadow beasts, as you call them, are Heartless. That's what the keyblade's for."

"Ah, these are dark times indeed," King Eidellig sighed under his breath, barely audible to us all. "If the bearer of the Keyblade comes, it certainly signals the end."

"We've seen the Horned King," Taran butted in, nearly puffing out his chest as if making an effort to trump me simply by his ability to audience before the tyrannical 'King' and come away alive. "And if he finds the Cauldron, he'll kill us all."

"Finding the Cauldron's likely why he's made his allegiance with the Heartless," I instantly followed, nodding authoritatively.

"Boys," Princess Eilonwy warned, her voice sharp. Both Taran and I instantly hushed, casting sidelong glowers at one another as we simultaneously sulked.

"Oh, no, no," the fairy King said, shaking his head. "Even with the aid of the Heartless, he'll never find it. No, no. It's safely hid in Morva."

"Morva?" Taran asked and I questioned mentally.

"Well, at least I think it is," the round red fairy quibbled. "Oh, Doli, is it?"

The bitter yellow fairy hissed, "Really? Is that one of my new jobs, remembering where the Cauldron was last seen?" A bitter laugh erupted from him. "Gee!"

A bit miffed with his yellow comrade's hateful sarcasm, the fairy King turned a paltry smile to us all and stated, "Oh, he'll know right where it is. You'll see."

"Morva," I breathed. "So we finally have a location."

"If we could get to the Cauldron first and destroy it-" Taran began, his eyes widening with hope even as he put his precious pig down.

"Oh, this isn't right, Taran," Eilonwy sighed.

"Wait, he's got a good idea!" I brightly interjected. Even though it bit at me to profess such a thing, I wasn't about to put a little thing like his grating personality blind me to the promise in what I was certain he was suggesting. "Getting to the Cauldron first and destroying it would destroy the focus he's given the Heartless! They'll have no true reason to follow him any longer."

"In fact," Donald followed, his eyes widening as he caught on to my train of thought, "they might even turn against him! Like the darkness did to Maleficent!"

"Gawrsh, that just might work," Goofy happily professed. "If nothing else, it'll make the Heartless all confused-like, and make 'em easier to destroy."

"Bingo," I said with a nod."

Taran nodded towards us. "It just might work." Turning to the fair Princess, he frowned. "Don't you see? If we destroy the Cauldron, it will stop the Horned King, and the Heartless as well. Please, come with me." Stepping forward, Taran took her hand.

I grit my teeth, resisting the urge to smack his gripping fingers away.

A feathery elbow nudged against my ribs. "Jealous?"

"Gee, Sora, what would Kairi think?" Goofy questioned from behind me.

I flushed and turned on my heel. "It's not like that!"

Both of my companions laughed heartily even as I blushed fiercely.

"Wait, I never thought – Morva. That's a hard place to get to," King Eidellig glibly muttered.

"How hard?" I asked, seeking anything to turn the conversation away from the path Donald and Goofy were drawing it down.

"Actually… neigh on impossible, from what the tales tell," Fflewddur enlightened me.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding!" Donald groused, stomping his flat, webbed foot.

"Yep," Doli helpfully interjected.

"Now, it's not entirely impossible," King Eidellig injected. "Why, you can take them."

"What?" Doli nearly screamed, his tiny antennae standing on end and his hat nearly jumping from his head with a life of its own.

Fflewddur got the entire party's thoughts out of his mouth before any of us had a chance. "Do you mean we're trusting our lives to-to-to _him_?"

"Tell me about it!" I agreed heartily.

Suddenly Fflewddur had a face full of yellow fairy, held barely at bay as the bard hoisted his harp between himself and his verbal assailant. I slyly ducked out of the way to escape the tirade as Doli yelled, "And what's wrong with me?" to which Fflewddur replied, "Oh, nothing. Splendid choice."

We all collectively winced as the harp twanged and a line violently snapped.

"Why, I'm beginning to think that ol' harp snaps a line every time that Fflewddur fellow tells a fi-!"

Donald chuckled queasily, even as he tightened his grip on Goofy's long mouth, clamping it solidly shut and holding on for dear life while his taller companion flailed for freedom.

With a nervous laugh, the fairy King shouted, "Shall we, then?"

We all watched in amazement as other fairies appeared and flew towards us, all turning into a horde of brilliant soft white lights. We were surrounded in a veritable whirlwind of glistening sparkles, being lightly dusted with their glow.

Soon, we were all floating gently into the air. Guess Tinkerbell isn't the only fairy that can help others fly, after all!

"Wait! Hen Wen!" Taran shouted at my side.

Glancing down, I noted that the pig was indeed still on the ground, watching us with patient blue eyes.

One of the glistening conglomeration of sparkles flew back towards the pink pig and consolidated back into King Eidellig. "Oh, don't worry," he said, his voice reassuring. "We'll get her home safely."

"Oh, thank you sir," Taran answered graciously. "Be good, Hen."

The world became a watery place once more as we were lifted through the bottom of the pond by the glistening fairy dust. Gasping, I almost sucked in a lung full of water before I'd been shoved above the water's surface and set gently on the ground.

"Augh," I groused, shaking my head and flinging water violently everywhere.

"Hey, watch it!" Donald shouted, only to burst into ducky wails of what certainly was screeched obscenities made unintelligible by his rage as Gurgi imitated me with vigor and glee.

"Alright, enough horsing around. Let's get this over with," Doli snarled.

Surrounded once more by glistening sparkles, I blinked.

The scenery had suddenly and inexplicably changed.

Instead of the soft, lush forest we'd originally met in, we were all standing in a murky, brown swampy bog filled with brown, thick mist, muddy water and decaying trees. The scent of death hung in the thick, murky air, muddled by the stench of slimy moss and the musk of fungi. All around us, trees twisted as if pained from the black water that silently devoured their roots, their limbs bogged by heavy algae and baring no leaves to be seen.

"Well, if it's the Marshes of Morva you wanted, here you are," Doli said with forced, sardonic glee.

"Ooh! Such a dreary place," Princess Eilonwy whined.

"Aw, c'mon," Donald muttered, lifting one foot and shaking it violently before slushing his way towards the relatively dry land the rest of us had found ourselves on. "This place stinks!" he professed, crossing his arms and tapping his webbed foot on the ground, his blue eyes narrowed considerably.

"Shucks, it's not that bad. At least there aren't any Heartless here," Goofy said with an optimistic grin.

"Meaning that they haven't figured out that this is where the Cauldron is," I realized with a smile. "You're right, Goofy."

Glancing around, Taran struck towards higher ground. "Let's see what it looks like from up here," he helpfully supplied.

Nearly rushing to his side, Eilonwy looked about, her face fallen. "I think we're lost."

"Oh, c'mon. How much terrain is there to cover?" I supplied as I marched up to meet them. "We're not lost. Just… in a place we've never been before."

Fflewddur huffed and puffed as he struggled up the steep slope we'd charged up. With a weary sigh, he cast his gaze up. "Are you sure this is the right place, Doli?"

The yellow fairy growled, leaning over the edge of Fflewddur's fantastic cap which he had made his carriage, and snarled, "Yes, I'm sure!"

"Well, if you ask me-" Fflewddur began. He then sputtered wildly.

"Fflewddur!" I shouted, charging forward.

I was too late.

The old man fell down the slippery side of the hill we were on and crashed onto the ground far below.

"Fflewddur! Doli!" Eilonwy shouted from my side, even as I stared at the heap below. Taran soon came up to my other side, his eyes huge with concern. "Are you alright?"

Doli shoved his way out from under Fflewddur's cape, the article of cloth having landed squarely over the old bard's head. "Hey, look out, you big, clumsy oaf!" he shouted, followed by a much softer, "Uh-oh."

I veritably leapt down the hillside our elderly friend had fallen down, landing solidly at his side. I laid my hand on his back before lifting my gaze to take in what had the yellow fairy enraptured.

I swallowed my next breath.

A small cottage was carved from the large, twisted tree that rose from the center of the black-watered swamp, moss growing heavily over its roof and a rotten wooden door blocking easy entrance. The shabby condition of the household isn't what made me stare in horror, nor was it the thick, brown fog that clung to it and the surrounding atmosphere.

It was the multiple stakes jutting out of the swamp and lining the path to that house's front door. Those stakes had human skulls decorating their tops, each adorned with trinkets that clanked eerily with every passing breath of wind.

"Welcome to Morva," Doli solemnly stated.

"THAT'S Morva?" I whined. "You've got to be kidding me!"

I never thought that'd I'd see another sight that would spook me as much as the _Cygnus_ had, with its twisted, heavy metal shape a dark blot against the light of space. This was coming darned close to accomplishing that feat.

After a few minutes, Taran and Eilonwy finally rejoined us, Gurgi quaking in terror behind them both. As a group, we strode up the skull-lined path to the cottage with its rotten door. I scratched my chin as we came to a halt before it, staring at the random mystic symbols painted all over the only visible entryway.

Taran swallowed a thick lump of fear. "Well, s-someone must live here."

Gurgi grasped desperately for Eilonwy's skirt, whining, "Gurgi not like this place. Uh-uh. No."

"Oh, come on. It's not all that bad," I tried to reassure, even as the Princess walked away from the cowering brown-furred creature.

Standing on her tip-toes, she looked bravely into the window, pushing her face nearly between the wooden bars that stood in place of glass. "It seems empty. Maybe we should have a look."

"Right," I said, looking to the door. I closed my eyes, willing Ultima Weapon to come to my hand. As the heavy weight formed, I felt my lips twist into a smile.

Tarn was already shoving at the door. "If I can just get this door open," he grunted, pushing with all of his strength.

Holding my head, I held the keyblade aloft. A slender beam of light erupted from its tip.

As its ramshackle lock clicked open, the door swung suddenly, almost dumping Taran into the confines of the cottage. I repressed the urge to chuckle as I followed him in, releasing the keyblade and letting it collapse back into the confines of my heart.

I stared.

"Gawrsh, that's a whole lot of stuff," Goofy breathed behind my back.

The place was cluttered from floor to ceiling! Pots, pans, chests, decayed furniture, spider webs, skulls, dust and the like stretched as far as the eye could see. "Oh, give me a break!" I whined.

"How will we ever find the Black Cauldron in a place like this?" Eilonwy sighed.

Taran shrugged. "It must be here somewhere."

"Let's get looking!" Donald snorted, shoving his sleeves up and marching firmly into the cottage.

"But we don't even know what it looks like," Goofy supplied, though no one stopped to listen to his words.

Even I joined the search, opening cupboards and closets, looking for anything black that resembled a cauldron.

Eilonwy's scream drew a frightened gasp from me. I spun on my heel, drawing Ultima Weapon instantly back into my hands.

Frogs were jumping everywhere, dashing out of the front door with amazing speed.

"Frogs?" I intelligently surmised.

"They're only frogs, Eilonwy," Taran all but laughed.

Doli fluttered angrily into the air. "Those were people," he shouted enthusiastically.

"You mean they were turned into frogs?" Taran asked, his voice shaken.

"What kind of people live here?" I asked, only to be interrupted by Gurgi leaping into the room with glee in his beady eyes.

"Master! Sora! Ooh, master, come quickly." Pouncing onto Taran, he shook him and then leapt from his prone body. Jumping up and down, he pointed vigorously towards one of the other rooms the cottage sported. "Gurgi found the wicked Cauldron. Quick, quick, quick! Follow Gurgi!" he gleefully shouted, bolting into the back room once more.

We all bolted after him, screeching to a halt the moment we beheld what the furry creature had found. "Behold, master. Sora, look!"

"The whole room is full of cauldrons," Taran observed.

"How are we supposed to know which one's the right one?" I questioned, scratching my head.

Eilonwy turned to me and Taran, her eyes huge. "I don't understand. Why would, why would anyone want so many-"

A woman's sharp scream came from behind us. I turned sharply on my heel.

"Thieves! Thieves! Someone stole all our frogs!"

I bolted back into the main room, Ultima Weapon leading my charge.

A flash of blue light brought me instantly to a halt, one hand leaving my keyblade's hilt to shield my eyes. Once I'd blinked away temporary blindness, I gaped at what was before me.

Three… hags!

Three hags, all with red hair and greenish skin clad in gray. One, the shortest among them, had a pointed cap on her head and a long hooked nose with a wart on its side, one fanged tooth jutting from her lower jaw.. The tallest one had thin, long hands with sharp nails, a headband holding her stringy hair from her face, and sunken eyes that glowered hatefully at me. The third, a rotund woman with small hands a huge… yeah. Her hair was thick, falling around her body in massive waves, almost drawing my eyes away from her comical blotched circles of blush on her green cheeks and her thick red lipstick. Her blue necklace, barely marking where her chin ended and the rest of her began, jangled as she nearly hopped in anger.

"You evil, nasty people," the headband-wearing witch snarled. "You shall all be turned into frogs and eaten!" With a snarl, she jabbed her finger into my face… then into the faces of Taran, Eilonwy and Fflewddur, who'd picked a spectacular time to join me.

Doli, at least, had the sense to vanish and flee the scene.

"Guys, run!" I snarled. "I'll hold them at bay!"

The hook-nosed hag hopped behind Taran, pinching his arm and cackling. "Nice and tender," she gleefully professed before trying to take a chomp of his flesh. He yanked his limb away in the nick of time, his voice horrified as he told her to stop.

The headband-wearing hag grappled with my own arm, nearly dragging my hand away from my keyblade. "This one seems a bit scrawny," she growled. I turned that grown into a yelp of surprise as I swung my keyblade violently in her direction with a yell of "Back off!" bursting from my lips.

Fflewddur, meanwhile, seemed to be having his own problems. He'd been attempting to get himself, Taran and Eilonwy away, only to be snatched by the rotund hag and snuggled fiercely. "My, aren't you the handsome one?" she cooed as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

I almost gagged, and drew my attention back to my own dilemma. However, the hag before me was staring in abject horror at the scene developing behind me, giving me nearly no option but to turn and look myself.

The round witch had Fflewddur shoved onto a table and was crawling over him. "You don't mind if I pluck your harp, do you, handsome?"

I nearly vomited.

"Bah! Enough of that lovesick nonsense," the hook-nosed witch shouted from across the room, waving her hand and zapping Fflewddur.

"Great beelin'!" he managed to shout before he croaked loudly.

"Fflewddur!" I yelled, right before I charged forward. The hook-nosed witch was making a run for him. She nearly got him, too, before I crashed into her and loosened her grip enough for him to hop away.

"Fflewddur, over here!" Donald shouted, waving Save the Queen vigorously. "I can change you back!"

"No, you don't," the headband-wearing hag snarled, shooting a bolt of magic at the duck.

Donald quaked barely managed to duck. Goofy, who was standing right behind him, was not so quick. He croaked loudly from by Donald's feet even as Save the King whirled madly in place without its owner there to hold it any longer.

"Yippee!" the hook-nosed witch squealed. "We're going to have toad stew." As Fflewddur hopped and Goofy sat in place croaking in confusion, a cauldron full of bubbling water appeared right under the jumping bard. He leapt away and blew wildly on his singed toes. Even as I attempted to charge to his rescue, the hag with her fang beat me to him with a wild cackle of glee and scooped him up with a wooden spoon. I lunged for that spoon, only to be held at bay by the witches surprisingly strong arm. I swung with Ultima Weapon….

And was dashed to the ground as the thick hag with her clownish makeup shoved her massive hip into both myself and my hook-nosed combatant, dashing us to the ground as she professed, "You're not gonna eat this one," while changing the poor frog back into his proper, human Fflewddur self. "Come here love," she simpered as she pressed his face into her large, round… yeah. "Can anyone here perform marriages?" she shouted gleefully.

"Marriages?" Fflewddur sputtered from his mounds of prison.

The hook-nosed witch hopped to her feet from my side. "You lovestruck witch!" she shouted before flinging magic. Fflewddur croaked in dismay even as I snatched the hook-nosed hag's leg and dragged her back down to the ground at my side.

The round witch lumbered about in circles, looking for her lost love and professing that she'd never forgive 'Orgoch.' Well, at least I finally had a name for one of them.

Fflewddur finally hopped free of his hag's crushing assets and leapt for his life. "Woo! There you are!" she happily cooed, blowing a kiss at him and morphing him back into a human.

"Enough!" Taran professed, charging with his sword, holding it at full arm's length and letting its tip waver.

I almost shook my head in dismay. It was apparent that he had zero experience with any real weapon. Even as Orgoch jumped from my side to join her fellow hags, I got to my side and held my keyblade calmly at my side.

"We've come for the Black Cauldron," I clarified, my stance easy and care-free yet telling of my experience. The witches stopped laughing as they looked at me.

Ha. Take that, Taran. They know who the real threat is!

"Did you hear that, sisters?" the headband-wearing witch hissed.

"Why, nobody's asked for the Black Cauldron in over two thousand years," the rotund hag gasped.

Alright, so it wasn't so much my presence that halted their cackling as it was my profession. Still, point went to me.

Orgoch, the hook-nosed one, hissed, "It's a trick. We're not going to let them have it, are we?"

"Don't worry," the headband-wearing hag slyly sleazed. "Leave it to me."

We watched as she sauntered to a door, her stride casual as she opened it. "Perhaps I might interest you in something else: a kettle, a cook pot, a skillet, a teapot, a bucket, a jar, a platter?" All means of things floated from the confines of the room she was at, knocking Taran over even as his sword glistened and flew into the air of its own accord.

Well… that was… alright, so it really was magic!

Even as Taran struggled with the pot that decided to land over his head, the headband-sporting hag looked at her long, sharp fingernails and said, "See anything you like?"

Her attention was quickly diverted by the antics of the mystic sword, as it danced through the air and destroyed everything that was hovering about. Even as Taran finally got the pot off his head and grasped his weapon, it continued to fly, now dragging him with it, attacking the pottery it had deduced to be its enemy.

"I don't believe it. I've never seen a sword like that," the lead switch with her headband whispered. "I've got to have that sword!"

Turning to her sisters, they muttered to each other, my ears barely catching the name 'Orddu' being used to address the headband-wearer. After a few moments of giddy discussion, they turned as one and the leader, Orddu, made her announcement. "It's decided then. You shall have the Black Cauldron." With her profession, she reached forward and grabbed Taran's cheeks, squishing them together.

Eilonwy stared with wide eyes. "You mean… you'll give it to us?"

"No way!" I shouted. "There's no way they'd make it that easy." With a snort, I toed the ground, barely resisting the urge to heft Ultima Weapon and take on the three hags myself. All that held me at bay was that they knew which cauldron was the Black Cauldron the Horned King was using the Heartless to find, and I didn't. Patience was needed until we found it – then I could deal with them.

Goofy croaked loudly in agreement from his new seat atop his finally toppled Save the King.

Orddu laughed heartily, shoving Taran firmly away and poking at Eilonwy. "That's not what I said. We never give anything away. What we do is bargain, trade."

"Well, you'll not have my sword!" Taran professed. "If you're going to take one, how about you take his?"

"Hey!" I shouted as Taran pointed towards my keyblade.

Orgoch scoffed. "The Keyblade only goes to its chosen one. He couldn't give it away if he wanted to. Not much of a trade if it vanishes the moment you get your hands on it, is it?"

"Gee. Seems like you _are_ the only person in the worlds who hasn't heard of the keyblade," I muttered under my breath, almost smiling as Taran flushed brightly.

"May I ask you ladies to perhaps consider this magnificent harp?" Fflewddur offered.

"A harp?" Orddu huffed as she reached for the harp and released it, knocking the bard over with its recoil. "Oh, when we want music, we send for the birds." A whirl of her hand conjured a cage out of which a flock of purple birds flew. "What would we do with a simple harp?"

"How about Save the Queen?" Donald whimpered, holding up his staff. Goofy croaked at his side.

"Hardly useful!" Orgoch screeched. "We've got dozens of mystic wands. Why would we want another?"

With a huff, Donald crossed his arms. Goofy let a mournful ribbit rattle his froggy lungs.

To everyone's surprise, Gurgi walked forward and tugged Orddu's skirt. "Wait! Gurgi will trade his crunchings and munchings," he whimpered, holding aloft the core of an apple.

Orddu glowered at Gurgi. If I had been the victim of that look, I'm certain I would have been quaking in my shoes at that moment. "Who would want-"

"Hold it, sister. Not so fast," Orgoch cackled, lunging forward and snatching Gurgi's apple core away. With a grin she ate it whole.

"All right," Taran quietly sighed. "I know what you want."

"No," I breathed. "You'll be defenseless without it!"

Eilonwy shared my sentiment, grasping his arm. "No, Taran! No!"

He pushed her gently away. "It's our only chance." Dropping to a knee, he presented his mystic weapon. "Here is my sword. Take it."

Orddu patted his head, patronizing him. "Is it your own choice, duckling? Remember: With this sword, you could be the greatest of warriors."

"Yes. I offer my dearest possession… in exchange for the Black Cauldron," he stated, his head bowed.

I swallowed sharply, a smidgeon of respect finally forming for the boy who'd been a thorn in my side since the moment we'd met.

"Agreed," Orddu professed, holding her hands aloft. "We have made a bargain."

We all stared as the witches turned into whirling vortexes of blue light and the sword simply vanished from Taran's hands. Raucous laughter shook the house, echoing all about us.

With a ducky cry of alarm, Donald zapped Goofy with a little magic of his own, reversing the transformation that had captured him and turning him back into his familiar, bipedal dog self again just as he'd done when we'd all entered and left Atlantica.

"Look out!" Taran shouted.

Whirling on my heel, I nearly cried out in alarm as a chair screamed straight for my skull. Ultima Weapon instantly turned it into splinters even as I finally regained my senses and prepared myself for the next blow.

The entire house was being torn apart by a whirlwind!

Batting furniture and pots left and right with my keyblade, I attempted to keep as much of the debris from hitting my companions as I could. Donald hopped to my side, a warbled shout bringing Thundaga down to blast away some of the disastrous mess. Goofy appeared at my other side, Save the King firmly in hand and his head ducked behind its massive shape, deflecting all that he could. Soon, all that was left was the huge pile of cauldrons, and those began to whip into the air as well.

The keyblade shook in my hands as I bashed heavy iron pots left and right, protecting the four that cowered defenselessly behind us. "Stay down!" I shouted.

The last cauldron shot heavenward. The land was quiet. The air was still.

Then an explosion rattled the atmosphere.

From where the center of the cottage once was, the land erupted with fire and steam, rocks crumbling and ground shifting. A huge black mass oozed like some lumbering beast from the rubble, smoke wafting from its giant form.

It was… a cauldron. The Black Cauldron!

"The Black Cauldron," Taran whispered. "It's ours!"

Clouds rolled in, blotting out the dismal lighting, darkening our landscape as cackling flooded the air. Turning sharply, Ultima Weapon still poised to strike, I stared at the heavens.

Orddu laughed vehemently, her giant form hovering in the clouds above accompanied by her three sisters. "I say, what funny little ducklings. Don't they know the Black Cauldron is indestructible?"

"Indestructible?" I echoed.

"Even with the Keyblade?" Goofy whined.

"Why, yes! Of course. Now, listen carefully," Orddu continued, amusement coloring her tone. "The Black Cauldron can never be destroyed, neither by darkness nor by light. The Keyblade, the Heartless, it doesn't matter. Only its evil powers can be stopped."

Taran's eyes lit up with hope. "Then there is a way. But how?"

Orddu laughed gleefully. "A living being must climb into it… of his own free will."

With a simple laugh, Gurgi bounded towards the cauldron. "Gurgi is bold and brave. He will climb into the evil Cauldron."

"However, the poor duckling will never climb out alive," Orddu supplied moments before our fuzzy friend dove in.

"Yikes!" Gurgi shouted, leaping from the cauldron's lip and into Taran's arms.

"N-n-now, look here, madam. Don't forget we had an agreement," Fflewddur stammered."

"Yes," Eilonwy frowned. "You said we could have the Cauldron."

Orgoch laughed heartily. "Of course we said you could have the Cauldron. It's not our fault you can't do anything with it." With a wild laugh, she spun in circles, vanishing with the other two hags as lightening lit the sky and thunder crashed violently.

"Goodbye, goslings," Orddu's voice laughed. "Remember, we always keep a bargain."

I let Ultima Weapon finally fade from my fingers.

"Wow. Fat lot of good this did," Donald huffed pessimistically.

"What a bunch of blundering misfits!" Doli shouted, reappearing in our midst. Turning to Taran, he shook his finger. "Things just never turn out when you're dealin' with people! You can go back to feeding pigs! I've had it! Good-bye!"

As the fairy vanished, Taran sighed and dropped his head. "Doli's right. It's-It's my fault."

"Oh, come off it," I sighed. "It wasn't like we had any other options."

"But I let you down," Taran insisted. "Without my sword, I'm nothing… just an assistant pig keeper."

"Hey, that's not nothing. You've got friends as a pig keeper, right? You've got a home, right?" I stated, looking at him with what I hoped was cheer on my face.

Eilonwy walked to his side and sat down with him. "Look, you are somebody. You must believe in yourself. I believe in you."

"Y-You do?" Taran stammered, even as he grasped Eilonwy's hands. "And I think that you're – Uh… I mean – That is – "

"Oh, out with it already," I burst, my grin less faked cheer and more snide encouragement.

The mood was demolished as Gurgi gave Fflewddur a sloppy kiss and was shoved away in disgust.

As we all calmed from our laughter, Taran smiled and said, "What I mean is, I'm grateful to all of you. You've been true friends. Now it's up to me – "

The atmosphere was shattered by the screeching of those draconic beasts Donald, Goofy and I had seen glimpses of during our initial journey to find Taran and Hen Wen.

"Look!" Eilonwy cried, pointing to the scaled wyverns as they circled overhead.

"Uh-oh. Trouble. Goodbye," Gurgi whimpered right before scurrying off.

"Gurgi!" I shouted, bolting after him. "You'll get taken off guard if you run! Animals always chase targets that run!"

I slipped into the bramble after the fleeing brown creature, only to hear Goofy and Donald shout my name and the clanking of weapons behind my back.

My sneakers slipped out from under me as I tried to instantly turn and see what was behind me. As I fell to the ground in the rough foliage, I stared with huge eyes.

All of my friends were completely surrounded by the Horned King's men.

Donald waved at me, his motion with Save the Queen veritably screaming 'go away, Sora.'

I knew what the duck was thinking.

He wanted me to run for now and save them later.

And from the look on Goofy's face, he was agreeing with his feathered companion.

I nodded in resolution.

I'd find Gurgi, and together we'd rescue our friends.

_-to be continued-_

* * *

First off, thanks to all the people who've favorited this story and/or put it on alert. I'm going to attempt to be much more diligent towards updating in a timely fashion (re: not waiting almost a whole damned year to put out a chapter because I let FF8 steal my attention again and then let KH:CoM, Eternal Sonata, Chocobo Racing, and other such distractions run away with whatever was left of my brain).

Review replies: (though these are reaaaaaally old now. Sheesh. Sorry about the delays once again!)… Actually, in light of how long it's been, I'm just going to do a collective thank you to everyone! Those being:

Thien, Jade003, Renkin-chan, Shadow Cat17, scarlettHuntress, Hold My Own, dareetel, Melodious Flurry, simple charm and ImmortalRei!

I'll get back to regular responses with the next chapter, provided anyone's actually going to read this and review.

* * *

Yeah, it's a huge chapter (almost 3 times my normal page limit for BCD chapters), but I want to get this world wrapped up in 2 shots, including this one.

It's starting to come to an end, at last! After much consideration, I've lopped 2 more movies out of the plot for this bugger in the interest of ending it on a high note and within the span of this decade. So "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and "Robin Hood" are toast, tossed on the cutting-room floor along with the previously discarded "Rescuers." Meaning it should (and that's a very speculative 'should') be reigned in at less than 80 chapters. Actually, I'm hoping for 74 actual chapters, with the prologue and the epilogue fleshing it out at 76 total. So we're actually on the home stretch now, with the last of our Disney movies, the second-to-last world, and one final glimpse into a tie-in with KH:CoM looming between us and the epilogue. Hold hope! It'll be done! And then I can move on to other crap that's been festering forever. Namely "Skewed" and "Journey of a King." Maybe even a follow-up to "Twist of Time," since I noticed some people wanted it.

YAH HA HA!!! (dances around with her copy of 'Black Cauldron' while the Ansem plushie stares at her, his eyes screaming 'save me from this psychotic woman' even as his mouth snarks 'SUBMIT!')


	65. Distress

Dear God, it took me a long time to get back to this. I could blame work or a busy life here at home, but I think instead I'll just blame it on my own lacking motivation. So here we go – hopefully I can maintain some sort of gumption to keep typing until we reach the end. With the huge pause in writing thanks to work crushing my previous story-telling flow and the pain in the arse that is regaining the motivation to write, I want to finish this bugger and move on to the next project I have lined up.

And speaking of next projects, there's a poll on my profile. There I mention everything I actually have thoughts to working on/finishing. So please, vote for the one you want to see put into motion after BCD is completed, and I'll work on it.

Oh, and excuse the formatting changes. The base chapter structure I was using went the way of turds in a toilet when my other computer crashed itself silly to the point of being irrecoverable. Damned hard drive pooped itself into oblivion. It physically melted and distorted so it could not spin back up after the computer had been inadvertently shut down. Guess that's what happens when you leave it up and running for over 2 years and that last year was without a properly functioning fan. Feel free to envision me with a huge sweatdrop right now.

In commemoration of the fact that it's been forever since I've updated and in recognition of the desire to finish this damned story this year and in less than 80 chapters total, this chapter is being allowed to break the page limit that's normally imposed on BCD. So enjoy this extra long installment of everyone's favorite blond unicorn. Next chapter will be long too, but the one after that should drop us back to the normal page limitations.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 65  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Distress

I stood alone in a field of darkness.

Just moments before, I had been riding through the desert sands surrounding Edge, having just returned to the continent after wrapping up the delivery of a package Cid wished to reach Shera in far-off Rocket Town before the end of the week. He had been working extended hours with the WRO in the newly developing city of Edge, and couldn't convince Reeve Tuesti to give him a week off to deliver a heartily desired gift to her in person.

It could have been considered heartless, denying the man time with his new wife, but I could understand Reeve's position. The city was new, barely rising from the ashes of Midgar's destruction, and entirely without protection. He was already shorthanded in his task of establishing some form of adequate living conditions for those people who had nowhere else to go, giving them a means to survive in the harsh and unforgiving environment that surrounded ShinRa's fallen technological marvel.

During my ride along long, twisting desolate roads snaking towards the newly founded city to the north, I had been enjoying the touch of sunlight skimming along my body and seeping into my battered and worn SOLDIER uniform, the rumble of the bike that roared with unmatched power between my legs and the caress of cool wind through my hair and over my cheeks.

The attack had come without warning.

The shadows that brushed lightly along the southern bends of the road, cast by the warm sun's touch on sparsely distributed rock and shrub, burst across the landscape with unbelievable speed. Then the unthinkable happened – the darkness that had suddenly sprawled under my tires surged.

I had tumbled, landing in a crouched roll and coming instantly to my feet with my sword ripped free of its magnetic holder and held before me. My bike slid on its side into the dark waves that were swallowing the desert sands to never be seen again.

I swung without knowing what my enemy was.

As the sky fell into darkness above me, black shadows burst into matching black smoke, whirling about me and dripping with liquid viscosity from my old, beaten Buster Sword. I'd heard the thundering of a ship's engines above me, quite different than the normal propeller noise I was used to hearing and sounding more like the roar of the Highwind's rocket engines when Cid had finally fired those things up. I didn't have time to glance up and confirm that it was him, though – the shadows around me had burst to life, strangely humanoid forms leaping from the almost watery ground to reach for me with sharp looking claws and murderous intent shining in yellow eyes.

Moments later a form swiftly whirled to my side, swirling red and black forming into a recognizable human frame within fragments of a second. Looking at me silently, Vincent allowed me one swift nod before turning on his heel and firing with deadly accuracy at those beasts that surrounded us.

We fought with all we had, my blood boiling as I swung my sword without restraint and Vincent fired his deadly gun until our foes came too close for comfort. I calmly ducked and rolled to give him room as I heard the HellMasker laugh behind me, the eerie hollow exultation of glee barely audible over the scream of his rusty chainsaw.

Then the racket of that chainsaw came to an abrupt end.

Turning sharply, I stared with disbelief as I saw Vincent, completely unmoving, laying facedown on the ground. With a roar I charged the shadowy beasts that hovered over his body, their claws raking over his flesh with determined effort and drawing his blood forth to color the black, featureless ground. Two swings of Buster Sword drove the beasts away for a split second. Without hesitation, I crouched by his side even as I drove my sword's tip into the ground.

My fingers shook as they sought a pulse.

I felt tears sting my eyes as I felt nothing.

Glaring at those wriggling beasts that surrounded us, I calmly slid that thick russet cloak from his body, whirling it about my own and clasping it at my neck. Without regard for their agitated approach, I then slid his heavy gauntlet from his left hand. Shaking my bangles free over my hand, I carefully replaced them with the metal clawed device, snarling at those who faced me. "Come," I hissed, returning my hands to the hilt of Buster Sword and brandishing it before me.

Everything that surrounded me fell into unmatched darkness. I couldn't see a single detail of the land around me. Within moments, I couldn't hear anything either – the very noise of nature, the thrum of the Planet's life itself, had fallen into silence. All that remained constant was me – the touch of the Lifestream still buzzed in my frame, being my only comfort and recognized only by the ache still present in my cells from the alien presence that was infused into them. Mako still burned my veins, seeping into my muscles and circling through my organs at all times.

I stared at the darkness that encased me, swallowing the strange, nervous lump that had risen in my throat.

It writhed about my frame, animated and sinister in purpose. Yellow eyes shined in the pith far and near, focused with single-minded determination on me. I heard the faint scraping of shadowy feet on matching black ground, accompanied by the strange sound made by the swaying of Shadow antennae in the dark. The clicking of nervous, anxious claws clacking together in desperate anticipation sounded like the chattering of a thousand freezing people's jaws.

My hands discreetly tightened about the hilt of the sword that I held and its wrapping of red-stained animal hide even as the hiss of Heartless leaping from their positions towards my own sang through the dark, the bunching and sudden springing of elastic frames crafted of naught but the shadows encased by people's hearts making eerie, soft music in the perpetual starless night.

Buster Sword sang in my hand as I whipped it about my frame, its huge length slicing with impossible ease through the hordes collected around me. Thick black ink spattered viscerally across my clothing, hissing and sputtering as it began to dissipate into acrid smoke and fill my nostrils with its metallic sting. My arms barely registered the imposing weight of the weapon I swung as I twirled it in one hand and sent it careening back into my enemies, dashing them like crisp Autumn leaves to the winds. A swift pass of my sword over my head swept springing Heartless from above, dashing them without forgiveness against the hard blackness upon which I stood.

I fought them without leaping from my spot, simple turns upon my toes drawing me to my enemies with far too much swiftness. The waves of shadows poured through the raven atmosphere, thrumming with energy even as I wrenched stolen hearts free from shadowy frames and dashed the wispy darkness they were crafted of to oblivion.

Still the beasts came with their sharp claws reaching for my withered heart, their eyes focused on their only prey in this bleak, desolate land. Still I swung my sword, my body high on adrenaline and in no way at risk of losing its momentum or stamina any time soon. The forms that sprang for me, that ran for me, that stretched and reached and time after time failed to reach me were lit only by the golden glow that poured from what we would define as their eyes; those who were lucky enough to get close enough to possibly touch my body were glazed with a soft blue, the Mako thrumming in my veins and giving me the strength to wield my sword with inhuman ease burning in my eyes.

After what seemed an eternity, those numbers finally began to stave themselves off. I straightened, Buster Sword dangling loosely at my side and barely held by my right hand, wiping my left wrist across a sweat-beaded brow and blinking quickly to clear saltine droplets of moisture from my lashes.

Turning sharply, I glowered at the blue-skinned and flame-haired individual who'd suddenly sprang into being behind me, his clawed hands coming together with mocking applause. "Bravo," his voice slithered from between his sharply pointed fangs. "And here I thought a darkness-infested little squirt such as yourself would've fallen before that tiny test. You've exceeded my expectations, Spiky! Guess ol' Silvery-Girl-Hair wasn't trying to pull one over when he pointed us all in your direction. Said you were a worthwhile replica, even if the crotchety old geezer who made you dubbed you a failure." A leer turned his long, sly lips. "Looks like he judged you incorrectly, wouldn't'cha say my little Choco-head warrior?" Fingers lightly scraping over his chin, the beast before me chuckled low in his throat.

My eyes narrowed as I regarded the being, one whose 'light' was nothing more than another brand of darkness staining my surroundings. I could veritably taste the acidic musk pouring from the blue figure before me, the darkness that comprised him so thick it practically roiled from his frame. I mulled over the black-hearted beast's words, then finally allowed my lips to form the question they so longed to spout. "Where is he?" I heard my voice grate.

Certainly my world had just fallen and I'd awakened in an abysmal, Heartless-flooded Hell, but to hear that _he_ was around, that _he_ existed even now, drew my ire like nothing else could.

The blue-skinned man's lips pursed, then curled into what could only be registered as a devious smirk even as he extended one of his cruelly sharpened hands towards me, palm up in a gesture of invitation. "Tell ya what, kiddo. Let's make a deal."

I blinked.

The scenery changed.

In the fog of my vision, I could barely make out the dingy and unwashed yellow paint of the back of the truck's cab, the blurred black image before me not sporting yellow eyes or antennae at all. A face lightly touched by the sun, its features fuzzy in my degraded sight, moved closer to my own as spiked black hair swayed lightly with that face's motion. Barely visible lips curled in a carefree smile as a merry voice chuckled, "I'm just kidding. You know I wouldn't do that to you."

I couldn't so much as lift a finger to reach for him, my vision canting as the truck went over a particularly rough patch of road and my unresponsive body tilted without control. All I could see were my boots, distant and foreign in the soft white light that clouded everything I attempted to look at.

"We're friends, right?" his soothing voice intoned from somewhere outside of the field of my vision. My heart was calmed by that quiet statement, any worry I might have held over my predicament, my lacking knowledge of who I was, where I was going and what I was doing faded into obscurity simply by the confirmation of his continued presence at my side.

It was warm, sitting in the back of that truck, its lack of a bed liner causing untold discomfort to race through my agony-flooded body and my inability to respond forcing me to suffer sitting on uncomfortable metal ridges. I wouldn't trade that moment for the world, though.

I was bathed in light. Soft, warm light that exuded friendship and comfort, bravery and fearlessness, willing to take on any obstacle that came before it and protect even something as inadequate as myself.

The man who projected that warmth towards me, his warm smiles upon his faded and blurred face hovering just out of my cognizant reality, was my light. In this world where I had no definition of self, no memories to cling to and no recollection of who I was or what I should be doing, he held faith and strength and hope enough for us both.

I wished I could reach out and embrace that light, claiming it for myself.

Instead I simply sat, a prisoner in an unresponsive, sickly body I didn't recognize as my own, twirling in a mind as disjointed and broken as the road we were being driven down.

I blinked.

The scenery changed.

I raced as quickly as I could towards the glowing center of the city we were in, my feet thundering over the hard ground below me. I had to reach her. I had to reach her now!

His leather coat flapped heavily around his frame as he fell from the heavens, plunging towards the earth.

No matter how quickly I ran, I came to realize the harsh, bitter truth; there was no way I would reach her in time.

I cringed as I heard that sword, that long steel devil that stole the lives of any who stood before it, slide viscously through her flesh. I cried in sharp disbelief as I watched her crumble before him, her beautiful white light so reminiscent of another that I could recall but place no face to smothered instantly in the black cloud that was my silver-haired nemesis. My run didn't slow as I tore to her side, sliding to my knees and reaching for her body, any regard I might have had for the fact that I was presenting my prone and undefended frame to the murderous ShinRa General flung to the winds with the horrid reality that was before me.

"…Aerith. This can't be real!" I harshly whispered as I hefted her limp form into my arms, feeling her blood leak from her body.

"Do not worry. Soon the girl will become part of the Planet's energy," the silken voice of Sephiroth softly whispered, its tone mocking and light, behind me. "All that is left is to go North. The 'Promised Land' waits for me over the snowy fields."

I didn't care. I couldn't care. Not with the source of my extinguished light resting so lifelessly in my arms.

"There I will become a new being by uniting with the Planet. As will this girl-"

"Shut up," I bit, interrupting his megalomaniacal diatribe. "The cycle of nature and your stupid plan don't mean a thing. Aerith is gone." I felt hot tears leak from my eyes even as I felt what little warmth there once was in that blood leave it completely as her spirit was embraced by the Planet itself. "Aerith will no longer talk, no longer laugh, cry… or get angry…"

As my voice hitched, the lump in my throat making it hard to speak, I bowed my head and pressed it to her hair. I listened for any response from the devil at my back. Hearing none, rage burst from my heart even as a sob broke free from my lungs to bury itself into Aerith's soft brown hair. "What about us… what are WE supposed to do? What about my pain? My fingers are tingling. My mouth is dry. My eyes are burning!"

Something in my psyche told me that this was not the first time I had felt like this. I knew not what to believe; I could clearly remember what I felt when my village was burned to oblivion and my mother had lain dead in its flames, and it was nothing so extreme as this. I had felt misery and sorrow and not a tiny lust for delivering revenge, This…

I felt as if every ounce of light I might have once known had been ripped from my heart.

"What are you saying?" the smooth voice of the silver-haired demon softly laughed behind me. "Are you telling me you have feelings too?"

I barely kept my voice from cracking with my pain and hatred as I glared over my shoulder, my eyes burning in their sockets with tears of sadness and completely unmitigated rage as I stared at heartless, cold cat-slit green. "Of course! Who do you think I am!"

He laughed outright at me. "Stop acting as if you were sad," he finally managed, wiping mirth from his eyes with gloved fingers. "There's no need to act as though you're angry either. Because, Cloud. You are…"

He vanished. I stared as yet another remnant of Jenova rose in his stead.

Laying Aerith's body reverently on the ground, I stepped carefully around her and hauled my sword from its magnetic hanger between my shoulder blades.

I blinked.

The scenery changed.

The pillars of the Coliseum rose around me. My boots swam in the dust of the arena, the empty stands rising around me like the walls of a jail cell. My eyes narrowed, I stared at nothing but the man whose presence seemed to fill the entirety of the arena itself.

The silence was nearly overwhelming as I faced him, the soft breeze rustling his hair and my own providing the only ambient noise to be heard. Buster Sword hanging loosely in my right hand, a mirror to Masamune in his left, I let its bandaged tip slip towards the ground even as my approach was brought to a halt. "So," I murmured, my voice hardly audible even to my own ears, "we meet at last."

His slit eyes narrowed slightly, a condescending sneer taking his thin lips. "I was searching for you, too," he chuckled.

I bristled, fighting the scowl that lusted to appear upon my lips away and willing my hand to still itself. He was insulting me, mocking my drive to locate him. Laughing at my need to be rid of him ever since I was informed of his continued existence; taunting my need to eradicate him ever since I felt his presence dance upon my heart, his darkness twisting itself so intimately with my own that I couldn't separate them at all. "I can't wake from this nightmare," I hissed. "You are my darkness."

His sneer developed into a proud smile as he lifted his right hand, beckoning for me to approach. "If that's so," he began, his voice deep and haughty with its pride and power, "I shall draw you into the darkness. Into the nightmare that forever deprives you of light, from which you can never awaken."

I would not dignify his statement with a verbal response. Rather, I responded with my sword.

We came together with an electric clash of swords, steel grinding against steel. My arms shivered under the strain of the strike, my teeth grit tightly together as we pushed against one another with all of our combined strength.

Wrenching apart from one another, we both simultaneously planted a foot and took to the air.

Wings flapping, we came together time and time again, not a word passing from our lips. The pace was manic, impossibly swift, the banging of our weapons almost a continuous sound in the large arena's empty atmosphere.

He took the high ground – I leapt from below.

As we met, he smiled at me, his free hand clasping the hilt of my weapon even as he blocked it with the ridiculous length of Masamune.

His foot connected with my abdomen. I sharply gasped as I was pushed away, barely able to get my feet under myself before I slammed into the ground.

Hovering above me, his one black wing flapping once, Sephiroth cast me a soft smile that sang of victory. "Angeal's Buster Sword. The one passed onto him."

I shivered, staring at him as he held it before himself, his cat eyes scanning it slowly.

"The one he entrusted to you."

Black feathers whirled through the arena. "No!" I cried, lunging towards him as he began to fade into that storm of black, energy crackling about his frame as he allowed himself to transverse between dimensions with the power of darkness itself.

That sword…

That last reminder… I couldn't let him take it from me!

The light that sword still held, the memories that were ensnared in its metallic length, faded into darkness as it was swept away by the embodiment of my darkness.

His voice, his mocking laugh, was slow to follow him into the void he'd vanished to, quietly asking between its chuckles if he'd finally taken all that was precious to me.

I couldn't help but snarl, even as footsteps approached me from behind. I paid them no mind – whoever it was would leave me be. My reputation was far spread in this Coliseum.

I was hard pressed to not jump out of my skin as Cid Highwind's hand clasped my shoulder.

"Looks like you'll be needing another sword, kid. Just your luck – I happen to know a guy that can make one, and that fucker owes me big."

I blinked.

The scenery changed.

"You'll be… my living legacy."

I was soaked to the bone, rain pummeling my body and seeping through my clothing. My skin shivered under the fabric, it being more filled with strength than my muscles that were straining to hold me in place and relatively upright. My head swam, my vision bright and clear much to my misfortune, my senses still fogged and overwrought by the searing pain tearing through my veins by the Mako that had been forced into them. I could barely hear the rasping breath of the one who held me, straining to hear his quiet words as his sweet, serene voice imparted them to me. The thundering of blood in my ears and of my brain within my skull, the haze of green fire in my vision and the agony flooding my body nearly drowned out those words he was wasting his precious air on.

Blood smeared across my face as it leaked slowly and thickly from the chest my forehead was pressed against. Before it had the chance to set, rain and tears mingled to drive the red vitae in thick rivers along my flesh.

The hand that had held me imprisoned despite the fact that there was no strength in that appendage any longer finally fell away, flopping lifelessly back into the mud he laid in. My scalp verily burned where he had been touching me, the feel of his blood staining me forever. It was with heavy trepidation that I eased myself back upright, kneeling at the side of the one who had fallen to stare at the impossible nightmare before me. I stared mindlessly as he struggled to lift his right hand, to reach for the huge sword that had fallen at his side. I could make no motion to assist him, my brain having difficulty processing his words as it sluggishly responded to the tragic reality unfolding before my very eyes.

"My honor, my dreams," he quietly groaned, hefting that massive blade's hilt towards me and offering it to me. I stared blankly as he smiled, his grin nearly as bright as it had been earlier when he'd reassured me that we were friends. "They're yours now."

This couldn't be real… this couldn't be truth….

Because this was Zack. He was a SOLDIER. He was a First Class. He was able to live through anything, right?

I wanted to yell at him. I wanted to tell him to stop talking, to hang on. But what little strength I might have had failed me. I couldn't push those words past the lump in my throat.

Instead, all I could do was urge my aching body to lift my arms, to wrap my stiff and nearly unresponsive fingers around the offered hilt. Once my grip was as solid as it could be, he touched my hand to push that blade more solidly towards me before his arm fell loosely back to the earth.

"I'm your… living legacy…" I whispered.

This wasn't real. This couldn't be real!

His eyes drifted shut.

I screamed, tears pouring down my cheeks, my lamentation stretching for the heavens as his light faded completely from my life.

I blinked.

The scenery changed.

I was in the pits that lay underneath Hollow Bastion, perched on an outcropping of rock amongst the thundering inverted waterfall and staring into the depths below. I took in the sight of hard white rock, of platforms set upon and hovering above solid water that rippled and flowed yet allowed nothing to sink into it. A harsh wind raced past me, rustling the russet cloak I wore around my frame and sending cold slivers of chilling droplets over my solitary wing that remained extended to my side.

As I stared at what lay below, I couldn't help but swallow harshly as I beheld what lay in wait for me. My gaze refused to remain crisply in focus. My eyes burned, a sharp stinging sensation throbbing from the back of my sockets and racing along the base of my Mako orbs. My left hand curled slightly, scraping the metal claws of my glove against the rock. My throat clenched, the wretched taste of sickness on the back of my tongue.

Blood was everywhere.

And the source of that red pool that stained the ground….

The one I'd been looking for.

I started as the black-winged angel spread his singular feathered limb, the fading yellow light of some mystic column he'd been encased in and the flickering blue glow of some spell dancing over his long silver locks. He slowly straightened his stance, his black trench coat falling easily around his slender body, the guards on his shoulders catching the light and shining, the metal belts that circled his waist clinking softly, their music barely audible to my sharp ears as it echoed up the wall I was on. Blood dripped from that single wing. Feathers slowly fell, some severed, some falling from the limb without provocation.

The weapon my winged adversary held, its horrible length glistening merrily, pierced cleanly through the chest of its victim, its point buried in the ground beneath that body. The body itself was at a slight angle, telling of how the strike occurred – the person speared had stared at the heavens, leaning back slightly to focus and perhaps counter any blow that was to come. Masamune had thrust forward, impaling that victim and burying a good segment of its length into stone.

Blood was still dribbling down the sword's length, now dripping from the edge of the stone upon which the opponents stood and adding its red coloration to the stagnant waters. It audibly plopped.

As my eyes set their gaze on the victim of tat beast's terrible sword, I nearly lost the contents of my stomach again. I felt my body shake violently.

I'd just noticed the gunblade glinting in the fading light at that body's feet.

Sephiroth turned, his lips curled in a mockingly serene smile. As his cat-slit jade eyes focused on me, he chuckled quietly.

The landscape shifted, wavering even as I stared at it.

Rock and water became a soft field of snow. Waterfalls became distant mountains. My perch became a prickly evergreen pine's branch that bowed slightly under my weight. Hollow Bastion became the small town that struggled for survival amongst monsters and ice, its battered denizens exuding no light or darkness of their own.

As Sephiroth's frame faded, Leon's body remained, blood bringing color to the snow he laid in even as shadows swarmed from the distant door to envelop him.

I stared as the waves of darkness crashed over him, obscuring his form from my sight. The sound of his flesh being torn to pieces met my ears even as I remained frozen in place in the snow-coated tree.

"So, have I taken all you hold dear?"

I screamed.

The scenery changed.

I was staring at a ceiling of rough wood, heavy whorls of grain barely visible in the scant light cast through a dingy window into the room I was in.

Bolting upright, I clung to the thin sheets that had covered me, the thick blanket that had accompanied them already pooled on the ground.

Rubbing my eyes, I stared at my surroundings.

I was in the room I'd dragged Leon into. I was in the inn, in that small ramshackle town, in that snowy land surrounded by darkness. I was occupying the room's only bed, nude as the day I was born, my clothing folded neatly and situated on the small nightstand beside the bed's headboard.

And I was alone.

An explosion roared outside, orange fire-light suddenly flooding the room through that dirty pane of glass that separated the space I occupied from the chilled land upon its other side.

I then knew why I was the sole inhabitant of that room. I realized in that moment exactly where Leon had gone.

That explosion had erupted from the direction in which the door to Kingdom Hearts lay.

I was immediately on my feet, pulling my clothing onto my body. Frowning as I nearly put my hand through the slice my previous appendage had torn into the turtleneck I had been wearing for so very long, I looked for anything that would keep my body heat from escaping through the violated fabric's defect. After all, Vincent had reclaimed his cloak and the gauntlet I'd modified to fit my own hand.

My eyes fell upon a black leather trench coat that hung in the small closet the room featured, obviously forgotten by the inn's last occupant.

Tossing it on, uncaring of its rather imposing length, I fled the room.

I had to reach him, before the last light I had managed to secure in my life was taken from me.

_to be continued…._

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_Review replies… normally go here. But it's been so damned long that once more I'll simply thank everyone who's added this story to their favorites/alerts lists and the following individual (Thien on Livejournal, scarlettHuntress, Shadow Cat17, IodoRor and Melodious Flurry) for their kind reviews!

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(the authoress digs around in a box) Now I know I put him some… ah! (as she blows dust off the abandoned Ansem plushie, she scowls as she yanks his pull string. With a quiet wheeze, the plushie's voicebox abused by lacking use, a barely audible "SUBMIT!" oozes from his soft self) You heard him! It'll motivate me to post. Really! Especially seeing as how the end is truly in sight. (she hefts a beer… then puts it back into the fridge to save it for later)


	66. Release

Let's hear it for Squall/Leon! The easiest character for me to play with, as I've played FF8 more times than imaginable and for longer than is healthy! (cuddles her pocketstation with its 370+ hour game on it – yes, that's right. 370+ now. What of it?) And him being an angst-muffin thanks to his screwball psyche doesn't at all hamper this psychotic glee. Oh no. It's more like an encouragement. No, more like an aphrodisiac. Mwahaha.

One moment of sniffles, though. As we are winding towards the end of the tale, this is destined to be the actual last SeeD Commander chapter. Poo.

Thien, this one's for you! Thanks for encouraging me to continue towards the eventual completion of this story via your review. :)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 66  
The SeeD Commander – Release

It took considerable patience, but I was ultimately successful.

I was able to battle the siren's call of slumber and wait for Cloud to drift off.

He'd accompanied me to a room in the inn we'd infiltrated. He and I had partaken in scant conversation, trying to sooth one another but undoubtedly simply adding to one another's anxiety. Any physical comfort we attempted to deliver to the other was derailed by past memories and recollections, by current worry and fear, and simply left to whither in the dark atmosphere of the chilled room. All of our simple touches and looks became stifling and heavy, forcing us apart – he curled his nude frame onto the thin mattress that dominated the simple room we were in while I took residence by the dusty windowpane that occupied a wall.

Watching silently, my mind reeling with the conclusions I had finally realized during our inane chatter in the moments prior, my heart heavy with the revelations I had finally come to understand, I watched with dull eyes as the waves of darkness that threatened Trabia's plains finally began to move over the landscape once more.

The static standoff between light and darkness was coming to an end.

The Heartless were coming once more.

And it was invariably because of me.

Once Cloud's breath finally steadied out, I took it upon myself to carefully fold his clothing and set it neatly aside. As my eyes drifted over his pale form, taking in the sight of soft skin marred by nearly as many scars as my own body sported and soft blond hair that my fingers ached to caress, I fought away every impulse I had to lay down beside him and simply ignore the threat that was approaching outside of the inn's simple windows. It took surprisingly considerable effort to recall those logical conclusions my mind had drifted to but minutes before, the deduction of the fate that awaited any further involvement with the blond siren on the bed by his own admission; the gut-wrenching knowledge that whatever I was feeling towards him would never be reciprocated and the fantasy I had dreamt becoming reality of him staying in my life would never see fruition. To look upon him, to give into that longing that swelled within me to touch him and join him in slumber, would only further seal me into fate's cruel talons for future heartache and pain.

No, giving into the dreams of happily-ever-after I knew deep within my heart had no chance to come true would be my undoing. Ignoring the waves of darkness that slithered over the remains of the planet that once was my home in favor of finding comfort with the one who shared the room I occupied would compound inevitable sadness – I'd be haunted not only by the inevitable fact that Cloud would leave me, no emotional tether I might craft ever having any chance to be strong enough to hold us together and strip him from the path he's determined to follow, but also the heinous inaction I'd be committing that would without fail doom every last person who'd managed to escape the first coming of the Heartless to my world.

Even if I could truly do nothing, I refused to stand idly by and watch horror strike my world again. I refused to follow a dream and flee reality by clinging to a hope destined to be dashed and accompanying Cloud on his flight from this world.

I had failed my world before; I was bound and determined not to fail again. I would stand before the darkness, a flimsy shield to stave the encroaching wave that was destined to fall, but a shield nonetheless. This was my home – I would fight for it.

Balamb may have fallen, but I was still a SeeD; I would still fight for these people with everything I had.

Cloud and his friends had no connection to this place. They would flee; they had to in order to survive.

I was connected. I would stand for my world and those people who had survived until my death.

Letting my eyes drift over the pale-skinned form upon the room's solitary bed, I fought the urge my hands developed to brush those soft cheeks, to caress that silky hair.

Instead, I ensured I had everything I needed, everything I'd brought with me, upon my person and exited the room.

I would face the darkness alone.

I would give my companions the opportunity they required to escape.

After all, I was the catalyst of this oncoming disaster – it was only fitting that I be the one to stand before it.

And… Cloud had no need for me.

I moved as silently as any man can move in heavy boots, exiting the room even as I slid my shirt back over my torso and shoved my arms back into the shortened sleeves of my leather jacket. My fingers made quick work of straightening the thick fur collar that brushed lightly against my neck as I marched down the stairs the inn contained. Swiftly casting my gaze about the common dining room of the establishment, I felt something akin to relief flood my heart when I noted that Cid and the strange new person we'd gathered into our wayward fold were no longer there; likely, they had retired for the night.

"Squall?"

Turning sharply, I came face to face with the woman who ran the Inn we were currently occupying. Tightening my hand around the gunblade I hauled with me, I narrowed my eyes and tilted my head, indicating that she could continue.

A small smile took her lips. "However this ends, I for one won't hold you to blame. You're going to battle them, aren't you?"

"Yeah," I calmly replied, turning sharply and walking towards the door.

Her words barely reached me as I swung the door open, greeting the cold night with iced eyes and steel resolution. "No matter how harsh our lives," she said with quiet determination, "even death by monsters is preferable to envelopment by darkness. Thank you for fighting for the privilege to die as we wish."

Keeping my eyes focused on the snow that floated outside, narrowing them slightly as a cool breeze stirred the freshly fallen white flakes and pressed against my chilled face, I shortly stated, "Spread the word around this town. The darkness is coming again. If you don't want to be overtaken, take whatever preparations you see fit. I'll buy you as much time as I can."

Without waiting for her reply, I burst into a run, leaving the door open behind me.

My footfalls were only slightly muffled by the thick snow that covered the ground as I ran for the gate, rotating the revolving chamber of Lionheart and quickly checking to ensure it was loaded. My shoulder dropped, my right hand swinging the blue-bladed gunblade forward and my finger expertly connecting with the trigger the moment it began to connect with wood.

I hardly felt the shrapnel dig into my flesh as I burst through the decimated gate, fleeing to the fields beyond.

The Heartless were achingly close to the small town, Shadows and Neo-Shadows running for all they were worth towards me.

As Lionheart swung, they burst into black smoke and ink, staining the crystalline snow with their remains.

I didn't slow. Those who flanked me tasted Flares and Waters, the chill of the land freezing those spells instantly as it encased my foes and leaving those unfortunates as statuesque warnings to their kin of what awaited them.

The waves thickened.

Ultimas exploded into being, followed quickly by Meteors pounding the land and Meltdowns burning a tunnel through the black wall that practically crawled over the land. Quakes ripped the land asunder, boulders thrown to the air and magma erupting from cracks in the bedrock crushing and incinerating all who tore across the land.

Even as the dragons, the behemoths, the mesmerizes, the snow lions, the gaylas who had inhabited the forests that were being quickly overrun fled around me, I continued my reckless charge forward, drawing every spell I had stored in my mind and hurling them with deadly abandon.

I barely dodged as a ruby dragon's body slammed into the ground before me, Wyverns digging into its flesh and ripping it asunder, consuming its heart and soul. A quickly cast Holy, barely noticed as it was stripped free of my junctions, obliterated them all.

They weren't relenting. It almost seemed as if for every Heartless that fell, ten more rose in its stead.

Gritting my teeth, finally interrupting my run as I plunged into the heart of the dark waves that flowed over Trabia's snow, I dug as quickly as possible through the spells I had.

Sacrificing some of my junctioned speed, I stripped a Triple free and cast it.

The Angel Stars and Bandits that caught my attention almost seemed to panic as they were enveloped in not one, but three rapidly cast Ultimas that blew them and the surrounding landscape to oblivion.

Another stripped Triple combined with Tornados ripped Battleships and Gargoyles from the sky.

Another stripped Triple combined with Meteors ripped through Invisibles, Large Bodies and Search Ghosts without mercy.

Despite all of my efforts, they were approaching. They were getting horribly close.

It was then that I truly wished for the rest of my party.

Not Cloud, Cid and Vincent – I wanted them back at the gummi ship, evacuating this doomed planet. Rather, I wished for Zell, Quistis, Irvine and Selphie. Quistis' Blue Magic, Selphie's prominent ability to rapidly summon, Zell's infuriatingly quickness and superior strength and Irvine's inhumanly rapid and insanely accurate marksmanship combined with my mastery of the gunblade and the might of Eden could actually give everyone here a chance to survive.

Rinoa, tapped into the power of Hyne himself with her sorcery, could easily turn the tide of this battle.

Pity they'd been taken by surprise, and were among the first to fall when the Heartless struck in their first wave of attack those years ago.

The Blue Rhapsodies, Red Nocturnes, Crimson Jazzes, Emerald Blues and Yellow Operas that accompanied those Heartless I had been decimating came within range.

I nearly fell to my knees as their magic ripped over me, my elemental resistance junctions keeping the combination of spells from slaying me instantly. Shaking my head, I stared as I saw through the Heartless' vague plan – during my momentary discombobulation from being slammed by multitudes of spells simultaneously, Armored Knights and Wight Knights had surrounded me and were leaping in for the kill.

Narrowing my eyes, I turned my mind away from the spells I was going to hurl, instead focusing on casting Haste. My fingers tightened on my gunblade.

And without moment's notice, I burst into motion once more. Black smoke, red light from fleeing captured hearts and raven-pith flew through the night.

A few swings of Lionheart cut a huge swath through my enemies, leaving me standing for a few precious moments on a black-stained clearing of snow, writhing walls of Heartless surrounding me.

They were thickening, their numbers doing naught but increasing despite my best efforts.

I could only stare in rapt horror at my surroundings.

The Heartless swarmed over the lands, their dark presence blotting out the white of the snow and the paltry light of the stars. Without an end to their ebb they seeped towards me, towards the small town I was so valiantly defending, claws bared and eyes unblinking as they focused on their goal.

Lionheart sang in the eternal night. The blue blade left a glistening, glowing trail of destruction as it hummed, the fire from continuous triggering burning the crystalline edge and staining its azure gleam with thirsty oranges and reds. Every swipe sprayed black across the soft snow, every bang drew an unearthly scream of pain and death.

I was their reaper, and whatever souls the Heartless could possibly hold within their empty bosoms were mine for the taking.

It wasn't long before the song of my gunblade fell silent, the expertly timed pull of the trigger not brining that familiar, expected pain of explosive impact and vibration to my hand and my wrist. My lips turned in a grimace as stark realization washed over me – I was finally out of ammunition.

And, standing on my own in the snow, my abrupt escape from the small town having been made with as little contact with others as I could muster, I had no one to cover me while I attempted to refine any more.

I stood alone, head hung and helpless, Lionheart's capabilities without ammunition significantly diminished; likely I could still pose a threat to those Heartless that swarmed about me, but the large swaths I needed to cut to significantly buy time for my companions to escape and for the people of the town behind me to make any preparations they felt were necessary to complete before the inevitability of darkness or death came to their doors were impossible to accomplish.

Perhaps, I thought, that if I stood still, I could grant at least a few more precious seconds for my companions to awaken and realize what was occurring, to gather their things and flee for the relative safety of Hollow Bastion. After all, the Heartless were coming for me. And if I was their target, I would offer myself to them to rescue whoever I could from their dark embrace.

So why wasn't I feeling the scrape of claws…?

Turning my focus from my unloaded, smoking gunblade to my surroundings, I stared with bile rising to my throat.

My enemies were circumventing me, their focus more on the town I was standing before than my offered, exposed and nearly defenseless body.

It suddenly struck me.

The people who had seen me leaving, gunblade in hand and murder on my face to do combat with those who would threaten this waif establishment, the people who had heard from the one soul I'd spoken with when I left and silently given me their blessings, the people who had the heartfelt belief that death by monsters was better than death by Heartless and were thanking me for my resolve to keep them from the clutches of the dark Kingdom….

It wasn't my heart that drew the masses.

My presence had drawn the people of these lands back to Light. They had begun to care. They had begun to hope.

I was the catalyst.

Just as I was the catalyst for the creation of Garden and SeeD, I was the one who opened the floodgates to the Heartless. I was their deliverer.

Hopelessness flooded over my heart, darkening it to those invading forces, letting them ignore me completely.

Then rage overtook me.

Rage called to the lands. Rage called to the Kingdom behind that distant door.

Rage called to the Guardians who had fallen with my home, drawing them from that consuming darkness.

An explosive yellow light ripped itself free of that distant door, thunder raging over the heavens and lightning ripping the snow from the lands. With a deafening scream as bolts of electricity tore through Heartless all around, that blinding yellow sheen twisted the sky and the clouds. Flapping wings created deafening booms that threatened to implode my eardrums with their force even as the thunder bird Quezacotl swept over the lands, deadly lightning more powerful than anything that could be wielded by mortal or Heartless rending all asunder.

I could only stare in disbelief.

The bird had gone down with Garden, resting in storage with the rest of the Guardian Forces we'd gathered on our journeys while Heartless had washed over my home!

The door to that dark Kingdom shuddered, the Heartless that were oozing free of it erupting into flame and blowing away on a horribly strong wind. Other figures, decidedly not Heartless and easily recognized, burst free of their dark prison, drawn by hatred of their dark foes to destroy everything in sight. The dark Demi spells of Diablos worked in curious harmony with Ifrit's fire and Leviathan's waves, driven by Pandemona's wind and ushered by Siren's silencing song tore through all that stood before them even as the minotaur Brothers crushed everything that made it past that devastating combination of magic.

Staggering as the land heaved under me, Alexander's huge frame lumbering free of darkness and shaking the very remains of the planet itself, I fell to my knees in the snow even as Doomtrain blew through the dark ocean and Cerberus' three wolves heads decimated everything he could reach. In the distance my disbelieving eyes spotted the huge form of Jumbo Cactaur, Tonberry King by the plant's side and Bahamut sweeping overhead, laying waste in their shadows. Even little Carbuncle was there, Ruby Light sweeping over every other monstrosity that shot from the door's darkness to protect them from retaliation.

"How…?" I whispered in complete disbelief, staring in rapture combined with horror as Bahamut was enveloped in a cloud of darkness, Gargoyles and Invisibles clinging to him and blotting his form from sight.

"You drew us," an icy voice soothingly cooed form behind me, blue arms surrounding me briefly before the nude form of Shiva stepped before me, her hands held aloft and waves of Diamond Dust decimating those who were still before me.

"Drew?"

"Your hatred touched us. We felt your mind, and have come to destroy as you wish," she responded with a cold smile.

Gripping my gunblade, I came to Shiva's side, prepared to lend aid to the Goddess however I could. Part of my mind was reeling over how unnatural it all seemed, fighting alongside GFs rather than battling them directly or exchanging places with them in the midst of a summoning.

Even with the strength of the very forces of nature and the unnatural strength of our planet's Guardians, the Heartless never slowed.

Instead, they seemed to come in greater numbers and with greater strength, overcoming those who had escaped by sheer will and incredible power from Kingdom Hearts' darkness.

I helplessly swung my gunblade, Lionheart's blade impotent and cumbersome without the fire of triggered ammunition accelerating and powering its strike, as GF after GF went down. Even Shiva's haughty nature was stymied as reality settled over us – my expectations to be incapable of escape were likely to come to fruition.

The heavens twisted, even as the final GF that stood free of shadow besides Shiva was encased in pith, swallowed by Heartless and destroyed.

Both the Queen of Ice and I turned our eyes as one to the sky, watching as black clouds twisted and swirled.

Eden was descending.

My senses ceased to operate properly – my hearing fell away, silence filling my realm and oppressively crushing in around me even as my sight blurred, my surroundings becoming a haze causing those objects and creatures I was to focus my full attention upon to stand out in stark contrast to everything else around them. Time seemed to slow; Shiva was turning, her eyes huge and her lips moving without sound, the ringing that took my ears swallowing the warning she was shouting and replacing it with a constant high-pitched buzz. Her arms surrounded me, pressing me to her bosom, shielding me from whatever was coming.

I peered at my surroundings from under her arms.

I saw the Shadow that was our companion, his eyes focused on the sky and brilliant and blue, before he ran towards the door his brethren were pouring from with a keyblade gripped in his clawed hand.

I saw Heartless waves swarm around Shiva and me, bypassing us to encroach upon the small town behind me.

I saw the gummi ship in the distance, its thrusters sputtering weakly and spewing sickly flame as they came to power, the tattered red cloak Cloud had surrendered to his newfound friend Vincent barely visible against the brightly colored confectionary ship.

And finally, I saw what Shiva was shielding me from.

Eden sank into darkness, parting the waves of Heartless with her mere presence.

She touched the snow.

I couldn't help but blink, staring in rapture and horror as her form instantly shifted. The Guardian Force I'd known suddenly stripped her presence completely from my mind, her alien touch upon my brain vanishing completely and ripping from my body painfully.

She shimmered, then did what any person who'd ever studied Guardian Forces had concluded was absolutely impossible.

She separated herself completely from the planet, culling any ability to junction her power as easily as a man sheds his clothing or a snake sheds its skin.

Where once hovered the Guardian Force I'd seen so many times in my nightmares stood a true Goddess, her alabaster skin brilliant against the darkness that surrounded her, her perfect feminine frame beautiful and horrible to behold. A thin belt held shimmering, colorful plates of showy armor upon her thighs, a thin necklace held a heavy pendant between her round breasts and served as an anchorage for the heavy red cloak that flapped in an unfelt breeze around her body. Wings sprouted from her back, their forms lowered to brush their feathered tips over snow. Upon her brow rested a heavy helm, its shape highly reminiscent of the strange bird-like head that formed the tip of the Garden-like structure that once served her as a skull while she was recognizable as a Guardian Force. From that helm erupted the huge wings she'd once used to fly through the confines of my mind, their steel feathers now visible to my eyes rather than to just my imagination as she had shredded my mind and memories with them. Above her, swirling slowly and hypnotically, a ring of light so similar to what had brilliantly lit the underside of that Garden-head she'd once had. Nude and beautiful, she took one graceful step forward.

Even changed as she was, I could easily recognize her for what she was.

Eden.

The destroyer.

Her foot touched the ground.

Heartless exploded around her, their dark inky blood coloring her feet, her ankles, her shins. The colorful bangles that were around her legs were stained black.

A murderous smile touched her blood-red lips. _"Ridiculous shades of a dark realm,"_ she quietly hissed, her whisper nearly deafening as it echoed over the lands and bent the few trees that still struggled to remain upright. _"You test darkness against light? True Light cannot be smothered by soft Darkness. True Light is the destroyer of Darkness."_

I stared, all blood that once ran through my body freezing with cold. I couldn't move, even to blink, as Shiva's arms tightened around me, her voice silenced by Eden's powerful presence.

_"I am apocalypse. As I created this existence, so shall I end it. This realm will not fall to any Dark Kingdom. Your Dark Kingdom will fall to my Light. Taste absolution, and be swallowed by eternity."_

Blinding, pure light radiated from the woman whose huge presence dominated the lands. Snow curled before it. Heartless dissolved within it. Trees burst into flames, only to dissipate completely. Those few hapless monsters that had been struggling to survive the waves of Shadows were instantly reduced to molecules, vanishing without knowledge of their fate.

Shiva released me, letting me sink completely into the snow, my eyes refusing to close and continuing to stare at the majesty of the destroyer before me. And as Shiva erected a wall of ice before us, weaving the remnants of destroyed Heartless into the crystalline structure, we were buried by Light.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

Thien: Well, had to get a final hoorah for potentially fixing Cloud's persona finished. And of course the next few chapters are going to continue the action, as it's entirely necessary to draw this story to a close. I hope Squall's persona was adequate for you in this chapter, as we won't be hearing from him again in BCD. Glad you liked that last chapter! And I challenge you to draw Eden as described in this chapter. (vicious cackle) I have character line art done, but my backgrounds suck balls. Someday I will succeed in stealing your mad skillz. :P

Rai Takemori: Thanks much for the reviews! Hopefully you'll be able to stick with this thing through the end. And, of course, a lot of your earlier questions should be more than answered by now. :)

* * *

(shaking the dusty, abused Ansem plushie, the authoress coughs as the last of the gathered dander of time is finally rattled free. A rough shake forces a wheeze and a wizened "SUBMIT!" from the evil little device.)


	67. Light

New request on my profile – I need a FF7 expert! So if you have some time and would like to beta-read another story I'll be writing after this, please contact me. It'll be slow-going (one chapter a week at best), so… yeah. Shouldn't be overloading anyone with potential work. I just need someone to verify my FF7 characterizations, and provide any guidance on how to improve them if necessary. :)

Yet another moment of sniffles; this is destined to be the final Cid chapter. No more excessive cursing from the chapter's focus character. Boo.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter (and if I missed you, I apologize in advance!). Also, apologies for typos - this was typed on sleep deprivation and the desire to get it up and out of the way before distraction could steal the ideas away once again. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 67  
The Gummi Expert – Light

I awoke with a start.

"What the fuck?" I blurted to no one in particular, sitting upright on the thin mattress I had been taking a short nap on and clutching to the sheets that pooled at my waist. For a second, I wondered just what the hell had woken me up so quickly and thoroughly.

A moment's worth of thought landed me to the conclusion that it likely had to do with the orange light that was pouring in through the dirty window the room sported.

An explosive roar and a brightening of the color that stained my room kinda clued me in to what the fuck was going on.

"Let's move, Highwind."

Vincent managed to dodge the ashtray that was hurled at his head.

Fucker should know better than to ooze his way into a guy's room without giving him notice first! I could swear that I'd just felt another year tumble right off the end of my lifespan. Guy just has that affect on people.

Growling as I swung my legs off the end of my bed, I glared at him. "Lemme guess. The rest and relaxation we'd decided were best to get those short two hours ago have been wrecked by one of our stupid fuckin' companions, right?"

He arched one dark brow. "As you recall, Cloud and Mr. Leonhart-"

"Call 'im Leon," I unconsciously stated, almost wanting to punch myself for filling in for the bastard the moment those words slipped from my lips.

I didn't miss the twitch of Vincent's lips as he suppressed a smirk of amusement at my automated statement. "Cloud and Leon, then. They were not present for our decision-making session."

"Dipshits. You'd think they'd stick around 'till morning at the very least," I groused as I swiftly got dressed and hefted Venus Gospel over my shoulder even as I fetched a very necessary cigarette and popped it into my mouth. Biting on the filter, I sighed. "Thought we'd be able to snatch naps before one of those magnificent dingbats went running off to bash Heartless."

Vincent simply shrugged before turning on his heel and walking down the hall, all billowing cape and clanking metal on worn wooden floorboards. Dramatic asshat, that one.

I tried to wipe the sleep that still haunted me from my eyes. It was shaping up to be a marvelous fuckin' day.

First Shithead the Shadow goes running off after warning us that the Heartless were approaching again. I'd tried to follow when he'd run off, but lost sight of him pretty quick. And seeing what was coming our way, I immediately went back to the inn to relay the news – the Shadow was right as rain, it seemed.

When I'd gone out to the gate those few hours ago in pursuit of our little Shadowy buddy, I'd seen the throngs approaching. Huge waves of black slowly skittering over white snow, barely lit by faint starlight. Yellow eyeballs staring at me far off in the distance, looking like stars themselves as they slithered through thick oily pith.

Given the fact that I'd lost site of the dingbat Shadow I was tryin' to run down, I beat a hasty retreat. After all, I wasn't dumb enough to tromp out there and face the oncoming mess all by my lonesome. I was by myself, tired and cranky as shit from not having an opportunity to really recharge the batteries. A refreshing nap to regain my energy and focus seemed in order. We probably wouldn't have a moment to do so in the near future, so best to take advantage of the brief reprieve we'd been granted. And the idjits were still holed up in their room – given what the girls an' me had figured out back at Hollow Bastion, I sure as shit didn't wanna stick my head in their shared domain any time soon.

Now the damned planet's remains were being blown to smithereens by what I was more than willing to bet was either a spiky-headed moron with a bangle filled with materia that he'd been hiding from us or, more likely, a scar-faced fucknugget who couldn't keep his head on straight if it'd kill him.

I damned near yelped as I almost toppled face first down the stairs, having closely avoided being run over by Cloud Strife.

He bolted out the door before I was able to scream my lungs out at his lack of fucking consideration for his buddies. I was left ineptly clinging to the crude railing on that stairway, fist upraised and face undoubtedly flushed with rage.

My fuckin' cigarette was on the ground, damn it!

Swiftly picking it up, I blew a puff of breath on the filter and sighed before sticking it back into my mouth.

Damned Cloud….

But he did clear up the almost nonexistent so-called mystery about who it was stupidly facing off with the Heartless all by his damned moronic self.

I finished making my way down the stairs and ended up at Vincent's side, arching a brow as he was quickly glancing through boxes of offered ammunition from the innkeeper. The woman was looking silently towards the door, her face pensive and dour.

"We gotta hurry, Valentine," I gruffly snarled. "Cloud's getting a good lead on us. We don't get outta here, we won't be able to back his ass up."

"No matter how swiftly we move, we won't catch up," Vincent softly stated, loading Cerberus with bullets and sliding handfuls of rounds into cleverly hidden pockets in his massive red cloak. "He's focused on meeting up with Leon."

"Meanin' he's just going to bolt through the majority of the masses, and we'd have to fight them to catch up," I realized with a shake of my head.

Vincent simply nodded, stowing his gun back in its holster and taking a moment to flex his fingers in his heavy metal gauntlet.

"So we'll get the gummi. Dipshits're so focused on getting into the fray they won't be thinking of any damned way out. Like fucking North Crater. You remember that mess?"

"Wasn't there."

"Oh, that's right. You were rescuin' Midgar citizens while ridin' around on yer stupid Vespa with Yuffie, right?"

Vincent glowered at me, his eyes blood red in the inn's faint light. "You have no evidence that anything so ridiculous could have possibly occurred."

"Tuesti showed me surveillance tape before the Planet went to shit."

I was torn between withering under his glower and laughing my fool ass off as I walked away from him and headed outside, feeling rather than seeing his dark glower in my general direction.

Stepping into the dark night, I swung Venus Gospel casually of my shoulder, one hand maintaining its grip as I grasped my cigarette with the fingers of the other and held it in place while drawing a breath of air through the filter. "What a fucked up night. Day. Whatever the hell it is here," I grumbled to myself, glowering towards the gates that segregated the tiny ramshackle village from the rest of the similarly destitute world.

Even at this distance, I could clearly see the Wyvern Heartless filling the air, their draconic forms weaving and dipping on unfelt air currents that were for the moment free of falling snow.

An explosion, a flash of brilliant orange light, and a huff of breath from the black and red bundle of leather and vinyl at my side got me to set towards the rather demolished village gate at an easy jog. Once outside, I didn't bother slowing but rather simply altered my course, heading not to the deepest dark of the fray but rather aiming for the slender forest strip I knew stood between me and my gummi. Leave the waves of Heartless to Dipshit and Spiky, I said. Hell, could even make out that wily spear of yellow that was Cloud's retarded hair jutting out of the black.

Plunging unchallenged into the thinned forest, I ducked and wove around bushes and tree branches, hopping as nimbly as I could over boulders while still half asleep. Vincent, of course, kept easy pace with me, his ruby eyes focused on our surroundings.

I grimaced, attempting to pick up my pace as I heard skittering in the forest that soon enveloped me. They were surrounding the entire establishment. They stood between us and the gummi.

Sure enough, the first clearing that I ran into highlighted the desperate situation we were suddenly in.

Two dragons, each with six legs and six beady red eyeballs, thundered towards us with roars erupting from their fanged faces. One immediately lurched, its head snapping forward and its mouth opening wide.

Vincent nearly pummeled me into a tree as he shoved me roughly aside. Falling flat on my face in the snow, I cursed a blue streak as I lifted my head and glared at the tree trunk I'd nearly made kissy-faces with.

Cerberus sang even as the heat of devilishly hot dragon breath roared behind me. Turning, I stared as Vincent, golden gauntlet held before his face to shield his eyes from the massive gout of flame he was being bathed in, shot through the streaming fire that washed over his frame and melted the snow he was standing on in a hot instant.

I turned my attention to the other dragon as it focused its beady eyes on my companion, energy building in those six orbs and sparkling and oozing like liquid lightning.

Taking my spear in both hands, I lunged straight towards the beasts that stood between me and my gummi. With a roar I swung Venus Gospel with every ounce of might I had in my horridly tired muscles, ramming it solidly into one of the scaly monsters even as I turned and punched the one that was about to unleash its eyeball lightning at my companion. I spun my spear, smacking both of the monsters in their muzzles before snarling and kicking at one of them even as I smacked the other with Venus Gospel's long haft.

Even as I finished brawlin' with the bastards, one of them opened its big damned maw and unleashed its hellishly hot breath at me.

I did NOT squeal like a spanked bitch, but I did unleash with a manly exclamation of surprise as I ducked behind a tree and fervently hoped that whatever deities ruled this podunk world that its soggy wood would be capable of withstanding the blast it was being subjected to.

A chainsaw roared through the pith of the night as Vincent decided enough was enough and let the Hellmasker come out to play for a bit even as I took his distracting appearance as my opportunity to run past the six-legged beasts that were intent on making us their last damned meal before they were absorbed by darkness. They didn't bother taking note of me, being more concerned with the mask-wearing psycho that was laughing as he threw status ailments like candy at 'em.

I wasn't 'bout to slow down for nothin' – the weird little demonic looking imps were easy to avoid, as were the Creeper Plants that dashed as quickly as they could through the snow. A tossed stick of dynamite took care of a batch of Fiery Globes, even as a bundle of Luna Bandits fell when I Dragon Dived their happy asses.

I could finally see my gummi – I was almost there! Good ol' confectionary piece of crap hadn't looked so damned good since I'd laid eyes on it in Wonderland.

Then I was brought to a grinding halt.

The malboro that'd come out of the woods wouldn't be havin' none of me circumventing it. Especially not with it breathing its wretched breath on me in a half heartbeat.

I was struck with a sudden bout of dizziness, nearly sending me to my knees. I couldn't see straight at all – everything looked like a malboro in every direction, all teeth and tentacles and eyeballs. Rage burned in my muscles and encouraged me to lash out irrationally even as infuriatingly irresistible sleep made my eyes droop and had me stagnant in the snow. My blood slid sluggishly through my veins, some sort of magic bringing my internal processes to a grinding halt as time ticked on. I felt the stinging slither of poison flow through my flesh.

Then a weird sound wave screeching from its fanged maw pummeled my ears. I felt the warmth of blood slide down my cheeks, pissing me off further even though my eyes refused to completely open and my body denied my commands to fucking move.

As liquid acid shot from its eyeballs and drenched me, I finally found my voice. "God damned mother-fuckin' piece of shit!" I screamed even as I wrenched my spear firmly into my hands and blindly attacked the son of a bitch.

A few seconds later, I looked down and saw green tentacle. With a cry I swung my spear.

Then I hopped around, pain overtaking my senses as I had just jammed the pointy end of Venus Gospel through my own foot.

"Don't worry! I'll help you!" a high-pitched, squeaky voice shouted.

What the fuck?

Something little, black and red and decidedly fuzzy lookin' charged to my side.

I resisted the urge to rub my eyeballs. "It can't be!" I bluntly stated, my attention completely wrested from the malboro before me.

"Haha," the little brat at my side chuckled, even as it lifted a megaphone before its little fanged mouth and its whiskers spread in glee. "Game over!"

And the malboro fell over dead. Just like that.

"You son of a bitch! Where the fuck are you hiding!" I screamed, whirling on my uninjured foot and staring into the forest that surrounded me even as I lathered myself in one of the very, very few Remedies I'd managed to find at the inn we'd been at just earlier that day. "Didn't even gimme a hint that you'd be here, you ass! Reeve!"

I glowered at the little cat robot as it yanked at my pant leg.

"Cid," its annoying voice called, "I'm right down here."

"Quit playin', you idiot. I mean where are you? Actually?"

"Actually?" the robot asked, its tail twitching.

I felt an eyebrow twitch in agitation. "Yes, actually."

"Right here."

With a huff I turned and started marching off towards my gummi ship. I didn't have time for this fuckin' nonsense.

The cat jogged at my side, hopping along with its little cape fluttering and waving its hands at me. "No, really! Cid, you simply have to hear me out!"

"Then talk while we get to the gummi, moron!" I snapped back, my patience being at an end. "Is it so fuckin' hard to tell me where you actually are, Reeve? This planet's goin' up, in case you haven't noticed! We don't get outta here soon, you're on a one-way ticket to hell."

Even as a batch of Hot Rods tried to mow us down and I mowed them right back with my spear while the dumb hopping cat robot threw a snowball that, surprisingly enough, blinded one of the cars and sent it careening into a tree, the mechanical feline huffed, its operator's patience obviously as short as my own. "And that's precisely why I'm going with you, Cid."

"Talk sense, retard."

"I'm right here. Something went horridly awry when darkness engulfed the Planet."

I paused. Then I stared at the robot who, I'd finally noticed, wasn't exactly speaking that slang it was so known for. In fact…

"Ya know, you've got an awfully formal speech pattern, Cait."

The cat all but buried its face into a large gloved hand. "I'll explain once we get to your… am I to assume that brightly colored conglomeration of odd pieces is a vessel?"

"You don't say nothin' about my gummi, shithead," I groused, kicking an Icy Cube that chose that moment to attempt to parlay with me to the other side of the fuckin' forest.

Just as we emerged from the thin strip of forest, my gummi right before us, a sheet of ice coated us from behind even as three huge centaur-like Heartless thundered around my vessel, charging us and whatever fucker just attacked us from behind. Cait Sith yelped at my side even as I cursed vehemently, whirling to see what was daring to breath its shitty snow-breath all over me.

I was face to face with the ugliest fuckin' critter I think I've ever had the misfortune to see.

Big and white, it was shaped like a deformed sea lion with giant flippers with claws on them and a body that thinned to a long tail at its termination. With no rear flippers or legs to speak of, the beast hefted itself forward with just its two front limbs, holding its humongous head aloft on an invisible neck. Huge fangs shined with drool as a red tongue lolled behind them. Yellow eyes stared mindlessly at me. Sharp horns jutting from its skull shined in the dim light cast on the snow by the stars overhead.

All them horns and the tusk-like projections that jutted forward from the sides of the misshapen thing's head almost made it look almost like a lion, but it was still fuckin' hideous.

It roared, rearing up as far as its stubby flipper-feet would let it, before lunging its massive girth forward and belting out with another blast of icy breath. This time, as I saw it coming, I was able to swiftly dive out of the way.

The Assault Riders that were at my rear weren't so lucky. All three of the bastards were coated in the freezing cold stuff, bringing their charge to a premature halt.

"Get to your vessel!" Cait shouted.

I decided that, perhaps, listening to the annoying little pipsqueak might be in my best interest. While he was providing distraction, I bolted for the gummi, making it safely to its hatch and wrenching it open.

Even as I tossed myself in, the robot cat hopped from foot to foot before tilting its crown and bunching its gloved fist. And just as the specialty spell _Lucky Girl_ went off and Vincent, minus his chainsaw and wielding Cerberus, arrived on the scene, the sky blew up with a shit-ton of monsters.

But these were monsters I almost recognized, so instead of sinking in dread my heart leapt for joy.

Bahamut was flittering around up there, bathing the ground in fiery breath. And other odd beasties were joining the battle, butchering Heartless left and right.

Cait took a few moments to pat Vincent on his leg before bolting into the gummi, heaving a sigh of relief as it flopped its robotic ass on the floor. Vincent made quick work of the Heartless with his gun and his stupid inhumanly good aim even as I set myself to the task of getting my gummi's frozen engines to agree with my desire to get the fuck off this rock and fire up this millennia.

As the engines clonked noisily, I heard Vincent's gun roar to life once more and Cait announcing that it'd go into the engine room and see if it could find any way to assist in getting the gummi up. I watched as more black Heartless swarmed from the door that hovered in the great beyond, washing over those monsters that'd appeared to wipe them from the planet's decimated face.

Then my fingers froze over the ignition switch, my eyes wide and my throat clenching as I saw that horrible thing Leon's summoned before descending from the sky.

"Attempt it again, Cid!" Cait's voice bellowed from the back of the gummi.

With a harsh swallow, I pressed the ignition and almost felt my heart leap for joy as the engines sputtered weakly to life. "What the hell'd you do?" I snapped.

As the robot dashed into the main passenger compartment, it quipped, "I rewired your ignition system to prewarm your starter. Simple task, really."

From outside, Vincent pointed, his voice catching my ear. "Cloud's there. Let's move, Highwind."

"Yes, let's," Cait chirped as it hopped into a seat and strapped itself in.

As I looked to the location Vincent had indicated, I felt my mouth fall open and the smoldering cigarette filter I'd been harboring in my teeth for who the fuck knows how long fall into my lap.

The monstrosity Leon summons had touched the planet, transforming into a giant naked lady whose very presence was slaughtering everything in her path.

Then her voice, whispered and mocking, barreled over the landscape and nearly blew my eardrums right away.

"Ridiculous shades of a dark realm, you test darkness against light? True Light cannot be smothered by soft Darkness. True Light is the destroyer of Darkness."

I felt my blood run cold. "GET IN!" I screamed at Vincent the second the door was fully open. As he swiftly obliged, I slammed my hands onto the gummi's controls and forced the craft into the air, leaving the door wide open and cold air whistling into the ship's interior.

The gummi flew as swift as it could towards where I saw Cloud's spiky fuckin' head, realizing right where he was going – he was running towards Leon, the Heartless that stood between him and the moron gunblading retard falling before Cloud's blade with surprising ease.

The beast woman who stood before us all, her perfection blinding and radiant, curled her lips into a deadly smile. "I am apocalypse. As I created this existence, so shall I end it. This realm will not fall to any Dark Kingdom. Your Dark Kingdom will fall to my Light."

Vincent's clawed hand wrenched Cloud into the gummi as we made a suicidal sweep over the landscape, my gummi's belly mere feet from the snow as we flew rapidly towards our final companion. Cloud wasn't afforded the opportunity to struggle – Cait unbuckled itself and assisted Vincent in slamming the blond into a seat and strapping him into place.

The woman who towered over the land let her blood-red lips curl enough to show pearly white teeth, her snow-colored wings brushing snow-covered ground as she lifted her hands. "Taste absolution, and be swallowed by eternity."

At that very second, a wall of ice with darkness woven into it erupted before my gummi, standing between me, the idiot gunblader I was damn near on top of, and the wall of light that was pummeling the land.

The gummi jerked violently as it careened into the suddenly erected wall, the ice holding with surprising strength. Even as I bit my tongue and tasted copper in my mouth, Vincent peeled himself off the wall he'd been slammed into and Cait whimpered as it attempted to get back on its feet.

Then the entire vessel interior was frosted over.

Lifting my head, I stared as I beheld Shiva, a fuckin' summon, standing before me as nude as can be and haulin' a singed and beaten Leon in her arms.

The gummi tilted wildly as a chunk of the icy wall that stood between us and what I was certain was uber-brilliant death flew off into oblivion.

The frozen woman narrowed her crystalline eyes and hissed at me. "Get this vessel away from this planet now."

Who the hell was I to disobey?

Struggling back to my panel, I smashed my fist down on the button to engage the warp gummi.

A few moments of panic overtook me as I stared out of the front window of my gummi, watching the ice wall Shiva had erected disintegrate completely. Light washed over us all, murderous and sharp and white and unending.

The gummi started to smolder even as the warp gummi hummed, those few milliseconds it took for the device to engage being more than enough time for the terribly pure attack to waylay us. I cried out as I shielded my eyes, the brilliance pouring in through the tinted windows more than my eyes could bear. My voice neared a scream as I felt my skin begin to blister and the sweat that was bursting into being on my brow begin to steam away. The cockpit of the gummi was filled with stench of smoking, burning hair and artificial fur.

Then the horror abruptly came to an end. The warmth of the warp-gummi's handily generated hyperspace tunnel surrounded us, gentle colors pouring into the ship that seemed oddly dark and black inside. Outside, the tunnel was interrupted by a blazing flash of white that suddenly washed out all of hyperspace.

I relaxed only once the familiar multi-colored tunnel of hyperspace reformed itself once more and the icy bitch who'd all but given my entire body frostbite had vanished.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

Animegurl14: Thank you so much for the kind review! Me being a FF8 girl makes that particular perspective so attractive for me to write. I'm glad that you enjoyed it! Writing all the GFs coming out of the woodwork was, to me, underwhelming, but I'm glad you thought differently. :) There will be a little more Shiva love in the future, as well. Huzzah!

terracannon876: Ah, welcome back to the story! And thanks so much for reviewing. I do strive to keep the quality of my writing consistent (even though I do need to give everything I've written a fearsome dose of editing; I fear that at times I do suck at this 'writing' game), and am happy to see that the effort is recognized. And as for what a Pocketstation is… it's a very small hand-held game system. It acts as a PS1 memory card. There are games you can buy for it, and there are some native PS1 games that have content for it like FF8 and Arc the Lad 3. With FF8, you can load Chocobo World onto the Pocketstation so you can take Boko the Chocobo with you and use him to find items that you can then load back into FF8. You can also get improvements to the Chocobo summon in FF8, taking that weak little ChocoFire to ChocoFlare, ChocoMeteor and ChocoBuckle (you summon Chubby Chocobo and drop him on your enemies – and he does more damage than a level 100 Jumbo Cactaur. Only Eden can beat him in sheer damage-causing capacity!). And you can get the Friendship items, which let you summon Moomba to kick the snot out of enemies. :) And once you save Mog, you can summon him to cast a healing spell on your GFs in battle (the dance is hilarious, featuring happy music and disco balls). So… I dare not think of how many hours I actually have invested in FF8 – the Pocketstation doesn't track time. ^.^;

Thien: Aw, awesome! Can't wait to see what your mad skillz can produce. I'm glad you enjoyed that particular scene – it was something of a challenge to write, so I'm quite pleased that it was satisfactory!

Melodious Flurry: (stares, blinks) Wow! It's been so long since I've seen your user name! (is pegged over the head by a cat who wears a sign stating 'if you'd update more than once a year, maybe it wouldn't have been so long, nitwit') Gratzie for the review. I'll try to keep it up as we wrap this story up, 'kay? :)

sickweirdo: Wow, thanks for the series of reviews! Yes, this story will eventually wrap up (in fact, it shouldn't be too far off in the future that I finish this darned thing). But I do have some ideas lined up for afterwards! Promise. :) I'm glad you're enjoying the story, and thanks again for reading what I've written so far. Hopefully it stays satisfying 'till its end.

Mischievious Kitsune: Thanks much for the review. Can't give you an answer about any prospective Sora/Riku in the future, and at this moment I'm not leaning towards a sequel (I've already lopped 2 movies out of THIS monstrous fic to attempt to draw it to a close) as I've got other projects lined up, but maybe someday I'll get to it. :) But there will be some Sora and Riku interaction in the near future! Hope you stay tuned!

Sinfully Sadistic: Let me begin by saying that I LOVE your user name. :) Thank you so much for pounding your way through this fic, and for the compliments on my characterization! It's one of the things I've been trying valiantly (and kind of almost succeeding at, I hope) to get right, so it's refreshing to see someone else things I'm doing an adequate job. I'm glad it's been interesting so far, and hopefully it'll remain that way for the (relatively) short journey it has left to the end. Hope you keep reading, and thanks again for reviewing!

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By the way? The retconning that occurred in Dirge of Cerberus can KISS MY ASS. (snarl) Yeah, because Yuffie and Vincent and the stupid physics-breaking scooter fucking explains why they weren't in the final FMVs of FF7. How about we chalk it up to the fact that they didn't have multiple endings dependent on which characters you had gathered in the game? Because no one in their right fucking mind would EVER have Vincent Valentine in their party when they fought Sephiroth at the bottom of North Crater. Yeah, they were in Midgar playing with a Vespa and watching suddenly NOT!DEAD!(and no longer a monster? What the fuck?)HOJO become a fucking COMPUTER PROGRAM. Stupid! BOO, NOMURA! Take your retconning and shove it where the sun doesn't fucking shine. (And this, ladies and gents, is why I have issues with every damned 'compilation of FF7' title. Because they change the storyline. And take something that already had about 2,000,000,000 plot holes and shoot it full of more. This is coming from a fan of FF8, which has plot holes that almost dwarf KH2 in magnitude and population.)

(The authoress lightly pats her Ansen plushie before hurling it at her cat, chasing Seiki away from her bowl of spaghettios. As the plushie collides with her food, it squawks "This can not be!" A scowl turning her lips, the authoress sighs and mutters that it was supposed to demand for reviews with a shout of SUBMIT, but the plushie just lays ineptly and stares at her with beady, wicked little eyeballs.)


	68. Kingdom

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

Second to last short Heartless chapter! Huzzah! Soon this three-page limit will be no more. Mwahahahah.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 68  
The Heartless – Kingdom

The haft of the key-shaped sword was warm in my clawed grip as I ran for the door to darkness that hovered like an obscenity over the pristine land.

Propelled by the desire to save my friends, I charged right through all who would dare to stand in my way. To my surprise, no Heartless stood their ground, instead choosing to depart from their chosen pathways to circumvent me and allow me straight passage through their ranks. Their focus was on the world before them and its survivors.

Venturing a quick glance behind me, I felt my very makeup quake.

The village veritably glowed with soft, inviting light. The hearts of the people who resided there shined with newfound hope and heartfelt thanks, even as the most brilliant of heart-generated light fled from the town and charged towards darkness before being surrounded with an explosion of fire and darkness.

More Heartless came from the door, attracted by the beautiful lights of hearts shining in the wretched depths of the End of the World.

I turned to face them. And that's when they finally took note of me.

Multitudes of yellow eyes focused on the shining blade I held in my hand.

I felt my lost heart thump with nerves from beyond the door even as I wrapped my free claws around the haft of the weapon I held, wringing my hands nervously on the warm steel.

Everything erupted into motion at once.

Neo-Shadows and Shadows burst from the blackened ground, sliding cleanly between flakes of drifting snow as they extended their claws and plummeted for me even as Wizards threw balls of fire and shafts of lightning through masses of rapidly approaching Darkballs and drifting Bolt Towers. Fat Bandits stormed towards me even as Driller Moles began to burst from the ground around me, their eerie eyes focused on me as they whirled dangerously in my direction.

I braced myself for impact.

The blade in my hand thrummed, its warmth pulsing like a heartbeat as it surged with power.

Not a single claw touched me as a brilliant flash of light exploding into being and washing over the land around me. Everything the light touched was instantly repulsed, flung like careless leaves caught in an autumn breeze.

I stared at the blade in my hand.

The warmth that poured from it, caring and gentle, was dedicated to protecting me. It gave me hope. It granted me courage.

Steeling myself, I ran towards the door.

Then I dodged wildly, ducking with horror suddenly flooding through my miniscule body, as a huge yellow bird erupted from the door I had set my focus on. I rolled just as a monstrous stream of lightning tore over the land, incinerating anything it touched and sending columns of snow rocketing into the air.

Trying to pry myself from the ground, I would have shrieked in sheer terror if I could find a voice in my Shadowy construct. A dragon had flown from the door, bathing the abused land in fire even as water and darkness not of the Kingdom blasted Heartless that had managed to escape the initial onslaught. Huge monsters with huge hammers and impossible strength ran before a three-headed reptilian dog-like creature, pulverizing my brethren left and right even as powerful tornado-force winds flung Heartless everywhere.

I slunk along the ground, shining weapon still in hand, praying to whatever deity would listen that they wouldn't notice me even as waves of fast flowing water pounded into the landscape and a huge dancing plant threw javelin thorns through everything it saw that moved.

Swiftly rolling, my weapon barely maintained in my grip, I dodged a kitchen sink that was wildly flung in my direction. It recoiled off the ground where I had just been and collided smoothly with a Wight Knight that had been right beside me.

I rose from the ground and ran as quickly as I could towards the door, sliding behind the monsters that were busily decimating Heartless waves. I tried to ignore them as they roared and screamed and exclaimed in rage and anger. I tried to maintain my momentum as I heard those hideous voices begin to face as the skittering of Heartless increased, their numbers still pouring from the Kingdom to overtake the land, their masses starting to envelope those creatures that had come forth from the door itself to protect the world I was determined to seal from the depths of pure darkness.

Then the clouds wrenched themselves into a whirlpool in the sky, heralding the arrival of the one creature that instantly brought terror to my being. I couldn't help but watch in horror as the creature I'd seen in Wonderland and witnessed being summoned at the Coliseum appeared once again.

Eden touched down on the planet, instantly morphing into something otherworldly and beautiful.

If I'd had the ability or the need, I would have had to swallow my terror.

Even as she spoke, her voice a soft whisper that deafened all who had the misfortune to hear it, I began to run with dire determination towards the door.

"_Ridiculous shades of a dark realm, you test darkness against light?"_

I barreled through the door, letting nothing stand in my way. The Heartless who would have stood in my way chose to flee the dark Kingdom that was our home and reach for the immense light of the planet and its heaven-sent defender.

_"You test darkness against light? True Light cannot be smothered by soft Darkness. True Light is the destroyer of Darkness."_

Oh please, no… if what was going to happen were to happen, then….

_"I am apocalypse. As I created this existence, so shall I end it. This realm will not fall to any Dark Kingdom. Your Dark Kingdom will fall to my Light."_

All the worlds were in danger! If Eden was going to bathe everything in absolution, even Kingdom Hearts would fall… and every world attached to it would die as well.

Suddenly my focus was no longer simply on my friends. It was on everyone.

And as much as it pained me to strive to rescue the depths of darkness, I realized the unfortunate truth – if it wasn't properly restored to light by the Keyblade, everything that was touched by it would prematurely perish in the complete absolution of light promised by this bringer of death.

_"Taste absolution, and be swallowed by eternity."_

I dropped the blade I held, barely noticing that it vanished the moment it left my claws. My heart pounding in fright from the Kingdom's depths, I pressed my shoulder to the door, my voice loud and clear and ringing through the Kingdom as I screamed when Light burst through.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

terracannon876: Hey, long time no see! :D Seriously, it's been way too long, neh? Hopefully the pace stays up for the remainder of this fic. As for Reeve… I'm not sure if he's going to be speaking much. In fact, he wasn't even supposed to show in the last chapter – the mangy cat robot insisted, though, and I gave in. :P Anyway, thanks for reading and reviewing, and hope the rest of this story meets your expectations!

Melodious Flurry: Why, thank you! I'm glad the action sequence came across well. :) And… let's simply say that Reeve/Cait surprised me as well. I wasn't planning on him coming in yet, but it seemed like an awesome way to get him integrated at last. And plushies! (throws them in their own little closet and lets the stuffing fly) Mwahahahah.

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(The Ansem plushie stares, yellow eyes huge with disbelief as the story is actually beginning to head towards the end it's been careening towards for far too long. With gusto, he thrusts his hips obscenely at everyone reading this post and points at the handy review option that does wonders to ecru motivation with a squeal of "SUBMIT!")


	69. Cauldron

Sorry it took so very long, but moving/school/moving again kind of ate my time. Woo. Now that I'm on the road in my camper, let's see what I can do before we end up on the west coast. :D

Second to last Sora chapter! And consequently, the final movie chapter in this fic (seeing as how two movies were actually lopped out of this for length constraints). Rejoice!

Disclaimer: I in no way own The Black Cauldron or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 69  
The Keyblade Master – Cauldron

I shivered with suppressed rage colored by cold and a smattering of fear.

I'd knelt, silent and still, watching as the gathering of dully-clothed henchmen armed with their shields and spears and swords escorted my friends, new and old, off towards the distant hills. Over those distant hills whirled the dark, foreboding clouds with their faint purple fiery lightning I'd seen in only one other place – above the toothy spires of the demonic tower Gurgi had professed to be a terrible place, the source of the darkness that oozed across the land and dealt Heartless mercilessly to its depths.

Donald, Goofy and the newest persons we'd gathered – Eilonwy, Fflewddur, and that aggravating brat Taran – were in the hands of the demonstrable Horned King. To make matters worse, they also hauled the massive black Cauldron Taran had sacrificed his sword for with them.

I was alone, armed with nothing but the Keyblade and back at square one.

As the last of the henchmen vanished over the nearest outcropping of rock, I snarled and sat on the ground, crossing my arms over my chest.

A few seconds later, I nearly leapt out of my skin, a yelp of astonishment bursting from my lips as a blast of pink and yellow fairy dust popped above my head and something landed in my hair. Beating my spikes with my gloved hands, I paused when I heard a voice squeak, "Yikes! Sora, watch it!"

I paused. "Jiminy?" I questioned.

"Oh goodness gracious me," the cricket replied, struggling through my unmanageable hair to land on my shoulder, dusting himself off before straightening his top hat and lifting a hand towards me. "Sorry about the sudden surprise, Sora."

"But… how?" I asked, my eyes huge.

The little pink fairy girl from the pond we'd been swept into giggled from above me, drawing my attention to her for the first time since her unannounced appearance. "Doli and me took the pig back, and Jiminy asked to be brought to you. But don't tell anyone! I don't wanna get in trouble."

Grinning helplessly, I nodded, keeping my motion muted so I didn't knock my smallest companion right off my shoulder. "You have my word. Thanks!"

With a giggle she vanished into a flurry of sparkles even as Jiminy hopped off my shoulder and into my coveralls' front pocket.

"Boy, am I glad to see you," I sighed quietly, even as I looked at the Keyblade in my hand, loosening my grip and letting it retreat. Ultima Weapon vanished with a flash of golden light, its warmth flying back into my heart as I looked towards the terrifying destination that awaited me. "We've got trouble. Big trouble."

Looking up at me, folding his gloved hands on the front of my pocket, Jiminy frowned. "I'll say. There's more Heartless around than ever before! Fortunately for Dallben, that old goat of his is a fighter. Seems that without the Keyblade or Taran there, there's not much to draw them, thank goodness."

Scowling, I shook my head. "I don't think they're going to be bothering with the farm for awhile, Jiminy. There's a bigger target to be had."

"Oh?"

With a quick nod, I started walking into the underbrush, my eyes scanning for any trace of the brown furred creature that had drawn me from my companions in the first place. "The Horned King has the Black Cauldron."

"Oh my," Jiminy sighed, shaking his head as a shudder roared through his tiny body. "That can't bode well."

"Nope," I replied. "Now with the Cauldron, he can control not only them through the darkness of his heart, but also whatever evil the Cauldron has within it, if Dallben's stories hold true."

"And the power of the Cauldron might be enough to stave off the Heartless' attempts to turn against the Horned King. He might be able to keep them under his command indefinitely in Prydain. Now that's a frightening thought," the cricket groaned.

A shudder wracked me as the possibility scampered across my mind as well. The power to control the Heartless? To be able to keep your heart from their clutches forever, no matter how desperately they would vie for it? Such would make a tyrant near invincible! The power of the Heartless and the ability to keep them from turning on you?

A thought then came to my brain that made my heart leap with hope. We hadn't been able to stop the Horned King from claiming the Cauldron, or to use the Cauldron's power to turn the Heartless away from Prydain, but there was still hope. "But… if we can reach the Black Cauldron…"

"What are you proposing to do, Sora?"

A small smile turned my lips. "If we can get it back, the Horned King will have no power source to command the Heartless with. If they're returning to him as Heartless do when they're not under direct command, they'll be filling his castle from bottom to top. And if we remove what has the power to hold them at bay and expose the Horned King as a weak being of darkness…."

"You hope he'll be absorbed by the Heartless?" Hissing, Jiminy shook his head. "That's a risky bet to take, Sora."

"But a worthwhile one. And the only one we have."

Turning his face towards the gruesome horizon with its purple lightening and deathly clouds, the cricket hunkered down in my pocket. "I'm awfully frightened that you might be right, Sora. Glad I finished up with my entry about the Cygnas and the crew of the_ Palomino_ before meeting up with you again."

"Don't worry, Jiminy. You'll be making entries about Prydain soon enough," I stated, standing straight with my hands on my hips, more confidence than I was really feeling radiating from my frame. "But first thing's first. I want to make certain that Gurgi's alright."

"Gurgi?" Jiminy questioned, looking quizzically at me.

"Yup. Gurgi. A new… friend."

It didn't take much searching – the fuzzy brown creature was slinking through the undergrowth, his progress slowed by what seemed morose regret as he sniffed loudly through his black nose.

"Gurgi!" I shouted.

"Yikes!" he squealed, leaping nearly straight into the air with his feet and hands flailing wildly. Landing on the ground, he turned to me, his chest heaving and his mouth hanging open as he panted wildly for air. Blinking, he smacked his lips, his tongue wetting his mouth. "Sora! Sora escapes from bad men?"

"Yeah," I confirmed, walking over to him and lightly patting his fluffy head.

Grabbing my hand, Gurgi pulled at it. "Sora brings magic sword, go rescue great lord and friends! Gurgi… Gurgi was scared. Gurgi ran, and bad men take Gurgi's friend."

"Don't worry, Gurgi," I softly said, my voice dropping as I squeezed his hand in mine. "We were all scared. It wasn't wrong of you to run. But now it's up to us to rescue them."

Nodding, Gurgi looked with determination at the snaking path that I instinctively new lead to that frightening castle that was our destination. "Right. Gurgi and Sora will save our friends. Come, we go."

It took us less time than I would have liked to come within sight of the castle. In fact, just over the rise of the rocks that had hindered our view of the horizon proper it rested, jutting from the misty ground towards the heavens. As Gurgi and I snuck towards the crumbling brick edifice of might, we ducked down among the rocks every time the horrifying shriek of those draconic creatures Dallben had called 'gwythaints' roared through the dark, putrid sky.

The closer we got, the more my heart quavered in my chest.

The castle was a dark, crumbling brick and rock obscenity, its presence battling against glarned, thorned branches and decaying trees with twisting thorns to pierce the heavens. It jut like a rising demon from a valley of fangs, surrounded with darkness and lightning. Sinking into a valley of mist, it slithered over a moat of sour smelling water filled with stagnant water tainted by floating globs of flesh and smelling of death.

"Oh, what a horrible stench," Jiminy complained from my pocket, pinching his nose with his gloved fingers.

"Just stay down. I don't want you to get hurt or lost if we have to fight," I muttered, ease only coming to me when Jiminy nodded at me and sank down into my pocket.

Looking towards the front gate, I felt my heart sink in my chest. Burly, thuggish men much like those who took Donald, Goofy and the rest from me roved over arched walkways and down dark passages, spears, swords and quivers with their accompanying arrows and bows all visible and promising pain or death. A fierce wolfish dog snarled as it walked alongside a helmed man, its teeth sharp and drool dripping from the tips of wicked canines as it pulled impatiently at the chain around its neck. Behind tattered tapestries, dingy and molding in the murky air, I caught glimpses of snipers with crossbows, their diligent eyes trained on the front gate that I was pondering passing through.

With a groan, I slid behind a large rock, hiding from the prying eyes of any within the castle complex, freezing momentarily as the scream of a gwythaint roared through the misty valley. Once my blood started coursing through my veins again, shaking the freeze that settled over me with the terror that was pummeling my body, I let a shaky sigh ease from my lungs. "Well guarded."

"Gurgi sees another way in!" the brown, fuzzy creature that was tagging along at my footsteps professed, grabbing my sleeve and pulling.

"Alright!" I said with a grin – a grin that instantly fell away when I saw what Gurgi was suggesting.

The sewers. Great.

It's not that small places frighten me. Not even when they're long, close tunnels filled with water and squeaking, flesh-gnawing rats. Especially not when they're winding, lightless and leading into the most frightening castle I'd ever seen or imagined existing in my life, only topped on the creepy-meter by the Cygnus.

It was the stench. Something that Gurgi seemed oddly immune to.

I nearly ran from the tunnel as we came to a chamber, splashing noisily as I burst from the sewer tunnel and scampered onto hard ground with a sigh of relief, nearly stomping on all the rats that were jumping into the waterway I'd just burst from and were swimming for their lives.

I watched them with a curious frown, as Gurgi squeezed through a small hole in the wall.

"Oh for crying out loud. Gurgi, I can't follow through there!"

I received no answer. A frustrated sigh escaped me even as I decided enough was enough, and there was a larger walkway for me to tackle.

Slinking up a set of stairs, I frowned and lifted my feet gingerly as green mist started to whirl around them even as it poured viscously away from the chamber door I was approaching. Setting my back to it, I listened carefully, my ear pressed to the decaying and fragile, musty wood.

I cringed as I heard a faint cry and the clattering of… bones?

I willed the Keyblade to my fingers.

My fingers twitched in anticipation.

Then my heart truly sank and I felt real terror fly through my iced blood.

I couldn't feel it in my heart! I felt alone, empty, drained….

I felt as I had when I'd first arrived at Hollow Bastion, and Riku had stripped the Keyblade from me by virtue of his stronger convictions.

My face pale, I swallowed my fear.

Then my fear burst from me in a wild scream as the door I'd been leaning against suddenly burst, slivers of wood digging into my arms and one piercing my cheek, as a thickly built henchmen flew through it and crashed right on top of me.

With a groan, I struggled to get out from under my flesh-made prison, surging with strength I didn't know I had as I heard clattering approaching me. Shoving the man from my back, I turned back to look at him.

I swallowed a cry of horror as my eyes took in the unnatural bend of his neck and his gouged, ripped face.

I'd nearly been crushed by a dead man.

Turning to face my opponents, I backpedaled as another scream tried to slip from oxygen-drained lungs.

Five skeletons were bearing down on me, fleshless grins wide as bone fingers gripped the hafts of pristine swords and maces.

As I fell over the body that I'd originally been smashed with, my hands flailing as I lost my balance, I felt a rush of air whip past my face as a skeleton's whipped sword barely missed decapitating me. My back hit the ground, what little air I'd managed to snag bursting from my mouth.

My hand curled around the dead guard's sword and wrenched it free of his slack fingers even as I rolled back onto my feet, taking care not to crush the terrified cricket in my pocket. Crouching, I grit my teeth.

Bursting into action, my sword feeling heavy in my hand, I roared as I struck against my unnatural opponents. One crumbled quickly as I slammed my weapon against its ribcage with crushing force. Another stumbled as I kicked its kneecap and the joint burst. A third received a punch of the hilt of my sword to its head, falling aside.

Even as I was whispering my thanks to Leon for beating me to a pulp on more occasions than I would like to remember, teaching me how to fight as dirty as possible, I ran the rest of the way up the stairs and left two skeletons scrambling to catch me.

Then the shadows surged.

I nearly fell square on my butt as Neo-Shadows burst from the hallway's shadows, claws outstretched and soulless yellow eyes boring into me.

My sword's swing did next to nothing, simply batting them aside momentarily. I scowled at the weapon. "C'mon! Even Leon's gunblade can crush Heartless! What's wrong with you?"

"Sora!" Jiminy shouted from my pocket.

"Oh, right!" I squawked, noticing that the skeletons were surging towards me even as the Heartless added to their numbers and skittered in my direction.

Instead of holding my ground, I burst into a run, easily outdistancing the shambling undead creatures.

The Heartless, however, stayed hot on my heals.

Turning, my heart burning in my chest, I screamed as I swung my sword as hard as I possibly could.

One Neo-Shadow burst into inky darkness, that pith they're made of splattering about me and coloring the walls in black. The rest that were following me pulled to a halt for a moment, looking at the sword and the remains of their comrade.

My head swimming with disbelief at how hard this was without the Keyblade, a newfound appreciation for the strength Cloud and Leon and even Yuffie had surging through me, I snarled. "C'mon."

Instead, the Heartless ran off down the hallway. I blinked with confusion until I heard the screams of henchmen and the wail of a guard dog echo in the distance.

My opportunity at hand, I took off running down the hallway, the green mist getting thicker and harder to move through as I moved.

"Good boy, Gurgi!"

I nearly fell over my own feet. Taran's voice! He was just ahead! Doubling my efforts, I continued to run, even as I heard him tell Eilonwy, Donald, Goofy and Fflewddur to go with Gurgi.

"I must stop the Cauldron," I heard him profess, his voice quavering with none of the confidence he'd held when we first met.

"Guys!" I cried out as I burst into the large chamber that held them all.

"Sora!" Donald and Goofy cried in unison, both voices colored with joy.

Donald and Goofy, along with Eilonwy and Fflewddur, were on an elevated platform with a beam braced across it, the remnants of rope hanging from it. Fflewddur was still unraveling the remains of the rope that obviously held him captive to that beam from his wrists. Taran, brash idiot that he was, was crawling with care up a rough outcropping of decaying brick to the remains of a crumbled arch that jut over the center of the room.

And below that perilous perch he was aiming to reach was the Black Cauldron.

Elevated on a platform three full steps from the floor I was on, the Cauldron's claw-like feet seemed to physically grip the rock with life-like vigor even as the thick green mist that had been whirling around my legs since entering the castle poured from its gaping maw. Flickers of flame burst from its top, accompanied by heat and the acrid taste of sparking electricity.

"Taran, what do you think you're doing?" I shouted, standing my ground with my sword at my side.

"Oh, but, Taran, that's impossible," Eilonwy exclaimed. "Why, you'd be-"

He reached the top of that outcropping and started sliding towards the end of the archway.

"TARAN!" Eilonwy and I shouted in unison.

"Please, Taran. No! You can't!" Eilonwy sobbed, reaching for him.

"Don't be an idiot! That thing will kill you! The witches said so!" I snarled.

"My mind is made up," Taran stated, slowly rising to his feet.

He was going to jump into it! He was going to sacrifice himself to the Cauldron!

Donald surged forward towards the very outcropping Taran had crawled up even as Goofy stumbled down to ground level. Spotting Goofy's shield and Donald's wand behind the pillar on my side of the room, I picked them up, setting the sword I'd scavenged down for a moment and lobbed them to their respective owners – Donald's skittered to a stop by his webbed feet, prompting the duck to wave his fist at me for a moment before he set his feathered hands to brick, even as Goofy caught his and turned towards the outcropping of rock, poised to hurl that shield if necessary to keep the pig keeper's assistant from doing anything brash.

Gurgi, however, beat us all to the punch.

Leaping onto the ledge, Gurgi swiftly pounced on Taran's head and knocked him over. "Wait, master! Gurgi not let you jump into Cauldron!" he shouted.

"Way to go, Gurgi!" Goofy cheered, dancing at my side even as Donald cursed and slid down the outcropping of rock, having lost his grip. Grabbing Goofy's sleeve, I dashed to the duck's side even as Fflewddur handed Save the Queen down to Donald's flailing hand.

Ducking so I didn't get clonked inadvertently by Donald's manic waggling, I frowned and looked up. "Taran, listen to him!"

"Gurgi, get out of my way!" Taran said instead, taking a swipe at the fuzzy brown creature.

Ducking back, Gurgi gasped and waved his arms wildly to maintain his balance as the foot he had at the very edge of the outcropping of broken archway he was on crumbled away. We all cried out in alarm, then sighed a collective breath of relief as he maintained his footing. "Whoa!" Gurgi gasped, even as he surged back to safety.

Red fire burst from the Cauldron as those loose rocks kicked free by Gurgi's feet fell into it, thunderclaps shaking the room as heat surged around us.

Everyone held their hands before them, warding off the fiery blast as the Cauldron verily growled in rage, Hell's fires pouring from it as the sickly green mist that was enveloping the castle redoubled their efforts to escape the Cauldron's maw.

"Please, master. Not go into evil Cauldron," I heard Gurgi plead on top of the archway.

"If I don't, we're all lost. Out of my way!" Taran snarled.

I felt my heart sink as Gurgi wrapped his arms around Taran, sniffing. "No, Gurgi not let his friend die. Taran has many friends. Gurgi has no friends."

"Gurgi…" I breathed. Panic then flew through me as he released his friend and approached the edge of the broken archway. "GURGI!"

Taran echoed my frantic thoughts. "No! Don't jump! Wait!" he cried, charging forward with his arms outstretched.

"NO!" we screamed in unison. Eilonwy cried out even as Fflewddur gasped. Donald and Goofy clung to each other, drawing breaths of horror.

Gurgi fell.

The fires that surged from the Cauldron lit the entire chamber in angry orange fury.

"No…" I whispered, falling to my knees.

Gurgi.

The _Palomino_'s crew.

The King.

Riku….

How many more would be lost before my eyes?

My eyes stung sharply. My arms shook, my fingers curling against the rock I was kneeling on. A sob racked my frame as tears dripped from my nose.

I hardly noticed the light touch of Goofy's huge hand on my shoulder or Donald patting my back.

I did notice, however, the sharp sting that raced through my fingers as I angrily punched the floor. "No!" I snarled.

"Go on! Go with Fflewddur. M-maybe there's still a chance for Gurgi."

I turned, my eyes wide. Taran was right behind me, looking at me. "Don't you agree, Sora?"

Getting to my feet, roughly rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand, I scowled. "You're right. C'mon. We're going to save him!"

Both Donald and Goofy gasped in shock.

The Keyblade flashed into being in my hand, returned from wherever it had gone. Its serpentine length, Ultima Weapon's delicately carved wisps glowing in the dark shadows of the room, was brilliant beyond measure – and its tip was flickering with power.

The Cauldron's fire was stained with white light.

"What!" I exclaimed. "No way!"

"The Keyhole's in THERE?" Donald squawked.

"Gawrsh, that explains why the Heartless were helpin' the Horned King get it!" Goofy professed, thumping one fist into a hand.

"Well, you know what we've gotta do," I said, looking at Donald and Goofy with a crazed smile lighting my features.

"Oh no," Donald moaned.

"C'mon!" I cried, bursting into a run even as I heard Taran cry out my name in panic and a horse voice screaming for something to 'get up' and 'come alive'.

Turning at the last moment, I grinning at Taran even as he gripped onto a ring mounted onto a sturdy pillar, bracing himself against the whirl of wind that was shoving everything about us towards the Cauldron.

Then I stared. "Watch it!" I cried out.

The Horned King himself had appeared.

Towering above Taran, his purple robe fluttering in the unnatural wind, the skeletal beast with his sharply clawed fingers reached for the boy I'd almost call a friend. A pair of sharply twisted antlers jutted from the skeletal head through conveniently cut holes in a thick hood that covered most of his features. Glowing red eyes glowered from the shadowy recesses of a skull's face. A thick black cape rimmed with heavy fur spilled down his back, rippling in the wind.

"You've interfered for the last time," he hissed, reaching for Taran with his clawed fingers. The shadows rose and buckled around the room, yellow eyes peering at the boy and the skeleton monarch and skittering over decayed stone.

I struggled against the pull of the Cauldron, the Keyblade brilliant in my hands.

"Sora!" Goofy cried from behind me. "C'mon!"

"We can help best by shutting the door!" Donald urged.

With a growl of frustration, I nodded. "Fine. Let's do this!"

Eilonwy screamed, having just run to a side entrance to the large chamber we were in with clear disregard for Taran's warnings, as I heaved myself over the side of the Cauldron.

I expected it to burn. I expected to die.

I never expected to immediately be enveloped by darkness, cold shadow crushing me.

Even as I felt Donald and Goofy grip me from behind, I held the Keyblade before me and turned in the gravity lacking environment until I saw my goal – the open maw of the Cauldron, the fire pillar circumference surrounding my view of the ceiling of that chamber I was in a moment earlier. I held the Keyblade aloft.

As a stream of pure white light burst from its tip and the sound of a keyhole locking resonated around me, I smiled faintly.

"Are we…?" Donald shakily asked, his voice more visible than his being in the utter darkness of our new environment.

"I… think so…" I breathed.

Then I heard a scream. A very familiar scream.

My heart leapt.

Riku?

As I turned, trying to figure out where that voice had just come from, the world turned completely and painfully white.

_to be continued…_

* * *

(The Ansem plushie is interrupted in his obscene pelvic-trusting action and his wily screeching of "SUBMIT," which was entirely ineffective, by the sudden arrival via plummeting from the ceiling fan of the Sephiroth plushie, who proceeds to kick and pummel him and receive like in turn. While the dueling plushies of evil go at it, the nearby Squall plushie simply facepalms before pointing lamely at the 'Review' button at the bottom of the page – then gets sucks into the rolling cloud of destruction as both the wicked plushies noticed him stealing their thunder)

And the next chapter's actually in progress – it'll get posted once I have a connection again. :P And goodness knows how long that's going to be – we're kind of on the road right now, so internet's a bit out of the way for us.

And I still need a Final Fantasy 7 expert for proofreading my next fic to correct any errors in my characterizations. If you would like to do it, please leave me a message, either at my livejournal or in the reviews! To directly contact me, just hit the author profile – PMs work, as do emails. :D


	70. Silence

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

And on it goes. Final Cloud chapter! And my vain attempt to explain why instead of performing a successful cranial-rectal separation, Cloud went from pitiful in KH1 (what, with him getting his butt kicked by a twig in clown shoes beating him with a KEY of all things) to downright PATHETIC in KH2. Say what you will – yeah, he stands toe-to-toe with Sephiroth. But he's the mopiest piss-ant to ever piss in KH2, and there's no FREAKIN' reason for it! He's got Aerith, Cid and the rest of the bunch. He's never more than 20 feet away from Leon. And yet he's a pouty mo-fo who's wangsting because Sephiroth is looking prettier than he is standing at the Fissure's edge. BOO.

That was one thing that greatly disturbed me, other than them remaking the character model and getting rid of the wing – the stark changes in personality between KH1 and KH2. He went from being 'meh, I'll kick your ass. Fine. Don't care,' to 'woe is me, wah wah wah' with no apparent reason. Same problems in both. Same predicaments. One could say that his situation has vastly IMPROVED in KH2, owing to him being with friends/family at a 'home' rather than working for Hades in bum-fuck nowhere Coliseum-land.

Foo, I say. Foo.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 70  
The Ex-SOLDIER – Silence

I crossed my arms before my knee, hugging it tightly to my chest as I stared at the horizon.

The cool stone of the wall I sat on, hard and unforgiving, lent no comfort to my worn and tired body. Neither did the cool air that brushed over my skin, washing my right arm in chilled goosebumps even as the partial trenchcoat I wore protected my left side and flapped noisily in that breeze. Still, I couldn't bring myself to move from my perch – the sunset held me just as captive as my own thoughts did.

We'd made it safely back to Hollow Bastion. Whether it could be said that we arrived in one piece was highly debatable.

The journey we'd just accomplished still stirred in my nightmares, leaving me less than well rested these days.

I couldn't forget Wonderland.

The insanity that washed over us all, staining us all, laying our hearts and souls bare and crushing what little stability we ever had rests heavily on me. Cid's decay from that confident, self-assured and stalwart bastion of crass resilience into a waif, fragile man as easily overcome by his despair as any of us still left me shaken. To know that such a side of Cid actually existed, such dour depressive thoughts resided just under the surface of his almost infallible mask was disturbing. Cid had always been a man to rely on, a man to bring a smirk to my lips with his crass attitude and his 'never say die' personality. I'd never wanted to know that he was as human, as frail as the rest of us, that he had such sadness buried in his heart, but I'd had my eyes opened to that fact.

The instability that washed over all of us, coloring us as puppets of fate and laying our minds bare for our perusal rests heavily on me. Zack's memories, his personality, his very light that so made my world had come back to me in the depths of madness. He was with me, so tangible I felt as if I could wrap my arms around him and claim him as my own. My dearest friend, my most beloved mentor, my….

My hero.

For those few precious moments I had him back in my life, his light blasting through my heart with effortless ease and coloring my world despite all the darkness that clung to us. His strength, his warmth, his smile…. I'd not realized just how much I'd missed him. But there, in the depths of insanity, I found him. I found him in my mind. I found him in my soul. And he defended me.

Or did he defend himself?

I still can't be certain. Zack's memories still rest in my mind, buried beneath all that has recently been compiled upon my brain but still present. His memories of Nibelheim, of Sephiroth and Angeal and Genesis, of Aerith and his love for her still rest in my soul.

My memories of my childhood, of bullies and Tifa and my mother's death, seem so translucent and unreal at times. Like they're a product of an over active imagination rather than factual evidence of Cloud Strife's existence.

And those other memories that waft through my brain….

Memories of a laboratory, of a professor with small glasses and a hawkish nose, of awe-filled SOLDIERs' appreciative stares and congratulatory cheers, of the friendship shared between three 1st class SOLDIER men. Memories of training sessions in a large room where a holograph projector placed booted feet on the massive Junon city cannon. Memories of lounging beside a friend with dark hair, listening to the auburn-headed one read from a well-worn book. Memories of exhaustion from having to deal with an overly eager 2nd class SOLDIER that had been pawned off by the raven-haired friend, of attempting to train a boy who had the attention span of a hyperactive puppy and all the while finding him irrefutably charming.

Memories cast upon me by the injection of cells? By the experiments I'd been subjected to all those years ago?

Or my true memories, bequeathed upon me because I'm nothing more than a soulless puppet here to contain whatever's placed within me?

I couldn't forget the Coliseum.

I was free of my contract with Hades. I was free of my obligations to my darkness. Yet somewhere within me, it still stirred, still resting deep within my soul.

While I was free of my contractual obligations to darkness, I had yet to shake myself completely free of its stranglehold. And now my guarantee to finding the one I hunted, to facing off with my darkness and either decimating him or being destroyed by him once and for all, was demolished.

I no longer had an easy path to finding the one who haunted my nightmares. I no longer had an obligation to keep my skills intact, the promise of daily sparring and fighting having been stripped as easily as the wing had been stripped from my back, as the contractual stain upon my flesh had been ripped from my heart.

He was still out there. Now I no longer had the power of a god to bring him to me upon the completion of a simple task. My darkness floated now further from my reach than ever before, promising a longer, harder journey to finally be rid of it.

I couldn't forget the snowy land.

That lonely wasteland haunted my nightmares nearly as frequently as the black-winged angel who taunted me with promises of power if only I would succumb to darkness. It wasn't that it was special to me, remotely interesting or significant to my existence….

It had been Leon's home. His planet. The lone remains.

I don't know how I would have felt if we had found anything remaining of our Planet. Would I have been happy?

My heart sinks every time I think about that possibility. I think not. Rather, I would have been devastated. To know that some sliver of my home survived the initial attack, that survivors were struggling to craft a living for themselves on a remnant of a dead world, to know that I did nothing to help and just saved myself….

My heart certainly would shatter.

Just as Leon's has.

I should have felt joy at finding that snowy sliver of land in darkness. We got Vincent back. While part of me roiled in guilt and anguish every time I laid eyes on him, my grief for leaving him to die on our Planet overtaking me, his stern looks and silent reprimands delivered by bland stares with crimson eyes force those emotions that would plunge me into despair to fade away. With Yuffie's glee and Vincent's pretense at exacerbation when he was brought to Merlin's house to meet the rest of the gang, my heart actually found some levity. And without wasting a moment, Vincent had found himself a nice little hovel that had yet to be occupied to make his own, promising to assist from time to time with the reconstruction efforts around town – he just needed a nap first.

Even I had to smile when Cid offered to build him a coffin only to have Vincent's glower actually get the surly old blond to squeak.

I should have felt joy at finding that snowy sliver of land in darkness. We got Reeve back. Granted it was something no one expected, and not at all as we expected. Everyone had written the ShinRa executive whose large heart and penitent spirit had driven him to found the WRO as lost to darkness. He'd been no fighter as the rest of us, instead utilizing his creations to assist us in day-to-day efforts while he masterminded his plans from afar. How he'd be able to escape the clutches of darkness, the claws of the Heartless, was something we'd never consider – obviously a man such as him would have no such ability, and was simply lost, a casualty we would mourn day in and day out.

To find that his resolution to live was even stronger than the pull of darkness and the convenient proximity of his newest prototype of the Cait Sith robot left his heart a handy place to flee to when Heartless destroyed his body was shocking, to put it lightly. Everyone was so moved and happy they carelessly offered him cigars and bourbon, only to be abashed and ashamed when the little robotic cat would snivel and profess that his circuitry just couldn't handle it.

I should have felt joy – our gang was back together, all of us bursting free of Kingdom Hearts' far-reaching grasp and rejoining in a place that once was part of our home before darkness had separated the lands. We were reassembled, all of us safe, at Hollow Bastion.

But Leon stripped that joy straight from my heart.

Because I'd come to realize far too late that the crass man I'd met at the Coliseum, the snarling cynical warrior whose bitter disposition left most downtrodden or angered with his words, the realist who found such difficulty seeing the bright light that flowed through the worlds' darkness, had captured my heart.

I'd come to realize that I loved him.

For the first time in my life, I was certain that I and not some interloper in my mind and my body was actually starting to feel love. It was mine, from my heart. A love felt by Cloud Strife, if Cloud Strife was a true and definable individual as so many of my friends profess he is. It was an emotion that I could attribute not to any other but only to me, a springboard of individuality that I was hoping could catapult me into some sort of stable definition of self.

My feelings for Aerith were something I still couldn't come to terms with. Part of my heart claimed those feelings as mine. Most of my mind attributed those emotions to Zack, the memories I have in my brain from his constant stories and bemusing about her while we traveled together, the obvious love he displayed whenever her name was in the forefront of his mind. The love he tasked me with, those words forcing me to live for him and be his living legacy, granted on that final leg of the race to see her one last time - the leg where he collapsed and died and took his beautiful soul to the heavens where hopefully he found peace.

My feelings for Tifa were something that still confused me to this day. Friendship? Sisterhood? Familial familiarity? The love I would share with someone I would have as my partner? I still couldn't rightly place what I felt for her. Our past together, whether true or imagined, whether actual or fictional, didn't assist me in deciding the scope of those emotions. Whether I was truly the Cloud Strife of her memories, the boy who crushed on her and left to join SOLDIER to prove himself to be worthy of her, or if I was a puppet whose cellular material responded to her memories of Cloud Strife and molded me into a facet of her childhood friend left me in the same conundrum – were we family? Were we destined to be lovers? Did I feel for her as a friend or as something more?

My feelings for Leon… that was all I was certain of. But that realization was too late in coming.

If only I would have told him…

Maybe what's occurred could have been prevented.

Maybe he wouldn't have charged so recklessly into battle.

Maybe he wouldn't have sacrificed his heart and soul in that final fight.

That final fight haunts my waking moments, replaying itself before my eyes whenever I'm not focused directly on something.

The wall of Heartless that washed around me, over me, standing between me and my objective still danced before my eyes, their black forms a hideous mark on the pristine white snow and soft midnight colors of the gentle sky that graced the world whose name I still do not know. The tearing of my flesh as claws raked over me, the splatter of cold black slime that remained when they exploded, the hiss of their remains boiling off First Tsurugi's length. The sight of the beasts that burst free of the Kingdom's door only to be enveloped by darkness and die once more. The image of the huge summoned creature – Eden, Cid called it – that descended from the heavens and buried everything in painful, hideous light.

I don't clearly recall how I'd made it into the gummi ship. One moment I'd been holding my own against a plethora of Invisibles, my sword heavy and black as it tore through waves of enemies. My trenchcoat, stolen from the inn and barely sufficient to keep the chill of the land at bay, fluttered and tore as I dodged the encroaching claws of my foes. Soon with only the left side of it intact, I was roaring as I plunged straight into the heart of their strength and determined to make it through their masses or die trying on this attempt, the knowledge that Leon was just a few steps ahead granting me more strength than I knew I had. The next moment, though, I was inside of the gummi ship, staring out of the windshield as everything burned white. Cid's voice screamed in pain, Vincent's voice joined him, the smell of burning hair and fur mingled in my nose. My skin froze even as it baked when Shiva appeared and ordered Cid to flee into hyperspace. My eyes snapped shut as that horridly pure light seared my irises, making my blood burn and my nerves flare in agony.

The next time I pried my eyes open, they were all gone.

The planet.

The light.

Shiva.

Leon.

He was with us physically. But his heart….

The heart that drove him to atrocities in Wonderland, to tenderness and regret at the Coliseum, to pain and miserable recollections colored by sorrow and gentle embraces and comforts in the inn upon that doomed, shattered planet was gone. Broken. Destroyed just as absolutely as that world had been by the apocalyptic destroyer who'd unleashed with her hellish, irresistible light.

The last words Leon said in the darkness of that chilled inn's interior, more to himself than to me, rang hollowly in my heart.

"I despise fate."

Me too, Leon. Me too.

I'd told him before, at the Coliseum, that he had me infatuated with him. It was all I could say. I'd been too frightened to say what I truly felt, too afraid that he'd recoil from my profession and vanish from my life.

I couldn't tell him then that I loved him. So instead, I told him how I could come to appreciate him.

That he wouldn't stand in my way when I needed to leave, unlike all of my friends. That he wouldn't keep me from seeking my goal to be rid of my darkness.

I never told him that he could keep me from seeking that goal. That if he would ask me to stay, I would. That he above any other could keep me at his side.

That as long as he was with me, my darkness didn't matter – his light was more than enough to overpower it, to protect us both from it.

Even if Sephiroth rose from darkness once more, I'd be able to face him with confidence and hope – Leon's light would be with me, empowering me. I wouldn't face him alone.

But I couldn't bring myself to tell him. I'd been too afraid that he'd run from me, his own past and trials making him just as skittish as I am at the prospect of solidarity in relationships. He pushed everyone who could love him away, maintaining them as friends, shielding himself from the pain of having those he loves stripped from him by fate. Just as I push everyone away, so uncertain of who I am and what exactly is trying to produce those emotions that waylay me that I dare not attach myself to anyone lest that affection be the result of a lie rather than reality.

I should have told him. Then, perhaps…

Perhaps he would have stayed with me. Perhaps we would have faced the waves together. Perhaps instead of sacrificing himself to that doomed planet to try and rescue it, he would have fled with us and left it to succumb to the fate that it was destined to suffer.

Perhaps Leon would love me.

Perhaps my love for him wouldn't hurt so much.

As it stands, all I have left now is my hunt, my sortie to defeat my darkness. My quest to find my way back to the light.

My quest to find a way to bring Leon's heart back to him, to bring his love back to him. To bathe in his light once more and claim it as my own. To have my own love be my own light rather than an agony I am forced to suffer with every time I lay my eyes on him.

Tifa tries to bring me her light, her love. It doesn't suit me at all. There's only been one light I can truly feel comfort with. That soft sheen stained by gunmetal rage and soft gray sadness, whose white depths are so powerful nothing but the complete destruction of that light's soul could keep it at bay.

If I were rid of my darkness, perhaps my darkness wouldn't so bury his frail, fragile light. My presence almost seems too much for him, my agony and shadows squelching what little of Leon we were capable of bringing back from our adventures. Maybe then I could assist him in finding the remains of his heart, in reconstructing them and bringing his light back for us both.

I sighed quietly as the sun's rays turned orange, their brilliance dancing over the sky as the chill in the air seeped under that half trenchcoat I insisted on wearing.

I couldn't abandon it. Whoever it was that had owned it before me now laid dead, a victim of our appearance upon Leon's world. Another soul who fell into darkness or was incinerated by light owing to our arrival and interference in his or her life.

I cocked my head slightly as I heard heavy boots approach me. I knew that gait anywhere. Therefore I wasn't surprised at all when the rich baritone I had so come to love and now dreaded with every fiber of my being resonated from behind me.

"Everyone's waiting for you. Dinner's getting cold."

"Start without me," I softly bit, my voice tainted by bitterness.

"Aerith expected you to say that. She also told me not to come back without you. Move, Strife."

With a heavy sigh, I shook my head. "Move me then, Leon."

With a snort that I know accompanied an uncharacteristic roll of the eyes and smirk, he simply patted my shoulder. "No cookies for you, then."

My heart's beats slow and anguished, I plastered a false smirk on my lips and stirred from my seat. "Fine then. I'm coming," I resignedly professed.

It wasn't as if cookies could really get me to move.

Leon wasn't going to force me as he would before all of this.

Back before we'd set out on our sojourn, he would have crossed swords with me, threatening to pummel me into paste if I dared make him miss out on Tifa's lemon bars or snickerdoodles or whatever treat she had cooked for the night. He would have grabbed my hair in silence and physically dragged me, depending on the pain of pulling on my scalp to move me despite my stubborn nature. Or he would have punched me solidly on the back of my head, called me an idiot, and then professed that I wouldn't get any cookies.

This new Leon, all of his fire and ice destroyed, the lion with its teeth pulled and its ferocity tempered by domestication, would just wait with patience I'd never known him to have, arms crossed and slightly amused smirk on his face.

It was too painful of a reminder to have him do that. It was too clear of a reminder of how much he'd changed.

It was too clear of a reminder of how much I'd lost.

Shaking his head as he stepped to my side, Leon cast an amused gaze down at me. "You know, Cloud, I'm certain any tailor in town would be willing to give you a whole garment to cover yourself with."

"This is fine," I replied, strolling ahead without another word.

My heart sank as he fell into step with me, his thumbs casually looped into the belt that held his pants on his scant hips, his stance straight and confident and his gait easy, reflecting nothing of the man I'd come to love in that frame.

All I had left was my quest, my fight against my darkness. Only then would I perhaps be able to help piece light together. To fix what I had inadvertently helped break.

In silence we made our way to dinner.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

wanderingthunderstorm: Why, thank you so much for the reviews! The squealing fangirlism isn't at all sneered at or shunned, but happily welcomed. :D I'm glad you enjoyed Cid's chapters (I did to! Makes me sad that I won't be writing that perspective again. Boo). They were a blast to write. And I certainly hope you stick around for the rest of the story – it's almost complete, after all. Just wrapping up the loose ends now in a bunch of shorter chapters. Huzzah!

* * *

(The Ansem plushie peels his way out of the rolling ball of plushie destruction and fury, and struts confidently over to the Review button, thrusting his pelvis in its direction with a wild grin on his face as he squeaks out "SUBMIT!")


	71. Child

Only a few more to go. Mwahahahah.

Expect the final chapters of this story to all come in short and sweet – just taking those loose ends and tying them up, so to say. No more page limitations/quotas from here on out. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I in no way own Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 or Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

Here lies my attempt to rectify my stark shock and disbelief at the horrible change in Leon's personality – he went from pure Squall with his 'hey, the Keyblade chose you so deal with it, fuckhead – damn, we are so doomed' to 'WAI HAPPY YAY REBUILDING WOO! NO RINOA = NO PROBLEM EVEN WITH THE ALLUSION TO HER WITH THE LETTER BUTTERFLY!' and left me staring, going 'Who the hell's this stranger with Leon's character model?'

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 71  
The Ice Queen – Child

"Look, I made a snow angel!"

I looked down upon the tiny child and his creation, taking in the sight of him with a bemused smirk upon my lips. "Indeed you have," I acknowledged, looking at the vague depression in the snow.

He was covered from head to toe in snow along his back, his yellow shirt with its black horizontal stripes sticking to his skin and his bare red arms touched with red from cold. His tiny black jeans already wet and now covered with more white flakes, the boy shook his head to scatter loose white clumps from brunet hair and held out his arms to shake them vigorously, attempting to spread warmth back into them.

A nod towards the trough the boy's body had made in the ground, the twin arches where he'd been dedicatedly wiggling his arms in an attempt to make 'wings' and shuffling his legs to create a 'gown', I sighed. What this child imagined was so… mundane. So human.

"It's very nice," my voice sighed a cool winter's breath in his direction.

"Thank you, Shiva!" he brightly chirped. "I'm gonna go build a snowman now."

"Have fun with that," I said with a smile.

"Can I have more of the wet snow, please?" he asked, his gunmetal gray eyes huge and brilliant. "The dry stuff doesn't work so good for building stuff, you know."

Spreading my hands, I nodded as gray clouds slithered over a predominantly gray sky overhead, soft white flakes beginning to drift from them within a moment's breadth.

He cheered brightly and ran off, fingers spread and tongue sticking out, trying his best to capture the freshly falling snowflakes on his tongue.

I left the boy to his own devices. There were no threats here. There was no danger here. He would always be safe.

No longer was the threat of apocalyptic destruction hovering in this space, wings of steel burning through my snowy sky. No longer were there carefully crafted and continuously maintained ice walls to hold the demonic Eden, destroyer of worlds, at bay. She had stripped herself from this place, leaving no one but me with this child.

Once more, it was he and I. It was as it should have been.

It was as it had been when we'd first met, when he'd first discovered me locked in the ring he had found and dubbed 'Griever' because the lionic monster on it looked majestic and sad, when I'd first touched his young and innocent mind before the true atrocities of life could stain it with hatred and pain. The snowy field was pure and untouched, spanning his entire psyche – it was ours and ours alone once more.

No more black pith towards the horizon with its rocky outcroppings providing seating surfaces to philosophical demons attempting to draw my child to them for 'innocent' conversation that served to warp and twist the boy's malleable human brain.

No more fire and brimstone melting my snow, housing a horned hellhound with which I have had far too many clashes with in the past, forced into a stalwart stalemate by our recognition of the boy I claimed as my own having dominance over the flaming pup.

No more thunder racing across the sky, dancing around the huge thunderbird whose whispering voice deafened any who would listen to her song, destroying any peace and harmony within the soul fettered to her feathers.

No more shallow waves lapping against my snowy fields, the warm waters dotted with boulders that provided a home to the feathered siren with her impure and seductive music that corrupted and stained any ears that would listen to it.

No more immense ocean depths that roiled with the slithery swimming of the leviathan of the deep.

No more cracks in the earth through which the howls of Hell's dog could rocket.

No more racing winds of pandemonium stirring my pristine snow.

No demonic trains on fiery tracks racing through my snowy hills, no wily plant creatures spreading their sandy desert to support their own livelihood over my creation, no minotaurs tromping over my lands, no dragon carried by the winds overhead. No lumbering giant stirring my snow with his massive frame, no monsters' king slinking through my domain, no green rodent getting underfoot, no curious glances from the multi-armed warrior looking to see if trouble was afoot and his intervention could be used.

No goddess of destruction.

All was as it should be.

The boy was mine and mine alone once more.

What remained of his heart would be safeguarded by me for eternity's span, until his frame finally collapsed with age's weight or under battle's wounds.

He had already been so dreadfully hurt. I would not allow my child to suffer as he had again. I would not allow him to be crushed by the cruel weight of life any longer. He'd already suffered so much weight upon his tiny shoulders.

The weight of abandonment when he was a tiny child, of the knowledge that he was growing up not with a stable and loving family but in an orphanage with other children who via ill-fated circumstance or the lack of a family's love were there to be his playmates.

The weight of solitude when the one he was most familiar with, the girl he'd held in his fragile little heart as a sister, was taken from his life into the rainy night and stripped from his existence.

The weight of loneliness as the other children played their games, not always including him in their folds as his sadness and propensity towards solidarity segregated him from what their childish little minds could recognize as 'normal' and desirable to have in a playmate.

The weight of despair when he was passed over for those other children, those who came to find new persons to add to their families failing to see the beautiful heart hidden in my sad child.

The weight of devastation when the woman who'd stood in the place of his absentee mother, who ran the orphanage he had come to call home, shuttled him away to a strange and frightening destination to start his new life.

The weight of responsibility as he was forced to quickly leave behind the innocence of childhood and assume the mantel of an adult, to abandon playtime and fun for duty and work, to forget playing in the waves and building sandcastles in favor of remembering multitudes of ways to kill his fellow human beings.

The weight of misery as the people who reinstated themselves into his life were stripped from him in darkness, the lights that were finally having a positive affect and slowing the downward spiral of his anguish snuffed in one fell night.

The weight of distance, the impossibly insurmountable wall between him and our home silencing my voice and leaving him more truly alone than he'd ever been in his life.

The weight of knowledge, watching the home we'd finally returned to die because of his return granting hope to those who met him and felt his light.

His heart had finally crumbled under the weight that had been stacked upon it. His soul finally shattered when our world died.

Suddenly both of us were without our home, our foundation. I was able to swiftly tether myself to him, abandoning what shredded remnants still inhabited physical reality with considerable effort moments before those pebbles of world were incinerated by the apocalyptic destroyer's light. He was not so fortunate.

His heart had still been tied to his home. His hopes and dreams, as faint and frail as they were, still rested with his planet. He'd anchored his destiny with the world of his origin, his determination to provide it peace and life despite his realistic acknowledgement that it was indeed doomed providing a foothold for his mind and his soul.

When the planet vanished, my snowy field had vanished as well.

It's taken me immeasurable time to reconstruct what we have. My beautiful snow fields. My beautiful snow-capped mountains. My beautiful gray sky, the same color as my beautiful child's eyes.

He laughs and plays, pushing clumps of snow together and attempting to roll the matter in his small hands to create something recognizable.

He is not as he is within his mind in the physical world within his mind. I will not allow him to be so.

He is an adult to those who know him outside of his psyche. A man who has suffered. A man who has known sadness.

I will protect his heart by keeping it innocent. Here he will forever be a child, sweet and pure, knowing nothing of the hardships he has endured.

The memories of the man will be locked away from my child. I will not relinquish them with any ease. His innocent heart will have no reason to request such from me.

If he were to ask, I would give. I love my dear child too much to deny him his wishes. But maintained a child within his heart, he will have no reason. Of this I am certain.

Memories of his childhood friends have been consumed, their bitter flavor smothered with the sweetness of adult happiness smooth as I enveloped those thoughts into my makeup and strengthened my presence within his mind.

Memories of his love, the woman with her raven hair and her white wings, are locked so far from him that he has no recourse to find them on his own.

Memories of the sojourn that resulted in the decimation of our home have been destroyed as thoroughly as our planet, no trace remaining for him to find.

Memories of our home itself have been overwritten, replaced with the land we currently reside in – he is convinced that he has always been an inhabitant of this land called Hollow Bastion, and fortunately none here have resided long enough to refute his words. Even if any should bring his true origins to question, I will strengthen his convictions in the malleable truth of his heritage.

Memories of his true parents were easily disposed of. A simple lie, that his family was lost when he was too young to remember those persons, that he was raised by the now permanently absent castle-bound family I remember from his days of vacationing in this land when it was once a part of our combined worlds, rests firmly in his heart.

The deep-seated love he has developed for a new companion he holds in the physical world has been gnawed and nibbled at until it is nothing but friendship, something that will not devastate my boy when that companion is stripped from my child's life.

I have made my child a new man.

Squall has never existed in his newly reconstructed heart.

It has always been Leon. My child. My pure boy.

With a laugh, he waves from the snowman he has started to build, its shape vaguely reminiscent of me.

Smiling at my tiny brunet, I nod my approval, my gesture as warm as a goddess' can be.

My child beams before he turns back to his creation, his tiny fingers striving to add detail that he's determined must be there.

Leon.

Squall.

You are mine.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

Animegurl14: Sorry it had to be so sad last chapter, but I had to get that bit of brain-breaking characterization change description out of the way – such is the pain of trying to stay in canon, and placing something between two existing games, after all. XD But I'm glad you reviewed, that you're still reading, and I'm hoping that this chapter met to your satisfaction! Don't worry, we're almost through this crazy train ride. :P

Nacht Schleier: I'm glad you enjoyed the story, and thanks so much for reviewing! Hope you stick through to the end. :D

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(reaching over, the authoress plucks the Ansem plushie's pull string, smirking as he belts out "SUBMIT!")


	72. Heartbeat

And the official last Heartless chapter.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 72  
The Heartless – Heartbeat

The light had burned.

I'd dropped the Keyblade and fled into Kingdom Hearts, diving without hesitation through the door that stood open upon the remnants of Leon's decimated world. My drive to rescue my friends had lead me into the huge swarm of Heartless that poured from the dark Kingdom without fear, facing my brethren with Keyblade in hand and hope in my heart. The sight of the destroyer touching down, the sound of her profession as it rang through my makeup drove me without fear into the very place I'd so fought to escape in the first place.

Funny, actually, how a small change in circumstance could put me right back where I'd started.

I'd fled the Kingdom to stop the process of absorption. I'd fled to keep a remnant of myself in existence, to prevent my entire being from being completely crushed and smothered by the absolution of darkness. I'd abandoned my heart to the depths of the Kingdom, saving what remained of my frame and what little was left of my mind, determined to find the one being who could reach between Kingdom and Lighted World to help reunite me with my heart once more in a land where I would not be destroyed by darkness.

I had been terrified of the Kingdom, doing everything in miniscule power to remain free of it. And yet here I was, diving headlong into darkness, ready to embrace it, ready to be destroyed by it; if my sacrifice would save the other worlds, then so be it.

I no longer held hope for Leon's world. The arrival of the beast goddess called Eden had condemned it to death.

I was going to rescue the rest of the worlds. If the doors to those worlds stood open, if they were unlocked, then the absolution of this horrible, pure light would envelope those worlds as well and induct them to the same destiny as the remains of Leon's home.

If I closed the door once and for all, I could save everything else. Kingdom Hearts would still be awash in darkness; it would not, however, be a destructive bastion of light.

It needed balance. Both light and dark, dampening and harboring one another. It needed the soft serenity of Twilight. It needed the hope of Dawn.

My heart thundered with hope and courage as I dove back into the Kingdom, its beat loud and clear in my physical makeup as I pressed my back to the door. I remembered now how I was locking the door from the inside.

When my heart had strength, I had a Keyblade.

When I had resolution, I could keep the dark Kingdom at bay.

I shoved with all of my might.

It wasn't enough.

I felt burning as the light mercilessly bathed the Kingdom, dissolving it before my very eyes. I watched in horror as the colonnades that held ensnared hearts evaporated into nothing, their precious and irreplaceable cargo forever shattered beyond repair. I felt that light engulf the door I leaned against, shoving me along the ground, keeping it open despite my best efforts. I felt its murderous rays ease through the very structure of that door, touching my pith structure and burning it to a cinder.

I screamed.

And suddenly, there was a presence next to me, its back against the door as well.

I stared, my eyes huge, as I took in the form that was beside me.

Red coveralls, huge clownish shoes, thick white gloves and gaudy chains weren't what took my attention. Rather, it was the soft, insanely spiky brown hair and gentle blue eyes, as deep and infinite as the sky.

Sky…

Sora!

My heart leapt for joy from its confines in the slowly fading Kingdom as I felt a smile race through my construct, longing for a face for that joyous expression to be held on.

I finally met him.

Barely able to focus on the here and now, I pushed with all of my might, redoubling my efforts to assist him in what he was doing – the very task I had originally set myself to. Our feet peddled uselessly at the floor for a few moments, then with determined grunts we began to move.

Every push was arduous, long, drawn out and tedious, but the door moved inch by painstaking inch. We heard a faint click as it finally fell into place.

Darkness washed over us instantly as the brilliant, pure light of Eden the destroyer was cut off from Kingdom Hearts.

Slumping down against the door, falling to my rear, I felt rather than saw Sora do the same next to me. Lifting my eyes, I looked at him once more.

I felt it. My heart thundered, filled with happiness and joy the likes of which I can never remember having felt before. He didn't even realize what he was doing, but he had accomplished what should have been impossible – he'd shown my heart the way back to me.

Just as the moment had started, it was drawn to a premature end – a white duck and bipedal dog grabbed Sora's arms and took off running with him, both gesturing and laughing loudly about a door they needed to get through. Something about going back home.

I watched them run before finally getting up to my feet. Clasping my hand over my chest, I sighed.

The heartbeat within it was firm and strong, confident and calm.

Brushing long tendrils of silver hair from my face, I turned to the door Sora and I had just shut.

"Thanks, guys," I quietly breathed, nodding to the comrades I'd left on the other side.

Cloud, Leon, Cid… they'd been through Hell to get me back to my heart. This was as much my victory as it was theirs.

Offering a silent prayer for their safety, my heart filled with confidence that they made it through the attack of the goddess that destroyed that snowy world, I watched as the door shattered completely, the remainder of the world heart beyond it utterly destroyed.

Somewhere in the Kingdom, the rest of that broken heart thundered in agony.

Shaking my head, I sighed. "Don't worry. Someday, when balance is restored, everything will be restored. Everything that was demolished by absolution isn't lost," I uttered, more to reassure myself than anything.

My eyes drifted shut.

I could still feel that connection between us. Behind a closed door, Sora was running, his joy palatable even in this far removed land.

A smile took me as I ran after him.

Even if I could only support him from the shadows, I'd back him up. Even if I had to embrace the power of darkness, as long as my heart remained true to him, I'd do it.

His light had restored me.

His light was the Light that would restore Kingdom Hearts.

And I would remain with him until the end of time. If not in body, if not in light, then at least in spirit and in heart.

For the first time since memory began, my heartbeat was filled with nothing but joy.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

Animegurl14: Hey, it's fine! Griping about characters is half the fun. Sorry to have gone defensive. :P Anyway, I'm happy to read that you enjoyed the Shiva chapter! All in all, I was hoping I wouldn't be the only person satisfied with my closure on the entire Final Fantasy character arc and character personality changing issues of Kingdom Hearts. And plus, who else would I use? I broke Leon. (stares at the character) Only Shiva remains! And of course she wouldn't leave her li'l munchkin go face the hard, blistering world all on his lonesome. (sick laugh) Anyway, you came across fine. :D Thanks for continuing to read, and hope you enjoy the remainder of the story!

And many thanks to you, for being the only reviewer - you have helped motivate me to actually refine and post! Now... I've only got one other chapter written that's awaiting a reread prior to posting (likely going to occur sometime during the July 4th weekend)... then I have go (GULP) write one. Blast! Hopefully teh motivationz hold.

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(the Heartless plushie hangs his head and gestures feebly at the 'review chapter' feature, secretly overjoyed that he no longer is going to be used)


	73. Road

Final Sora chapter! Woo! Short one, too. Just used it to wrap up his story.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 73  
The Keyblade Master – Road

I stared at the sky, watching the clouds drift overhead.

To say I was confused would be to underemphasize my current mental state. I still couldn't make heads or tails of everything that'd happened.

All I really knew is that we seemed to be right back where we started. Donald, Goofy and I were back on that same grassy field we'd started our adventure from. The moment we'd made it back, Donald and Goofy had found themselves back in their old clothes, the gear I was used to seeing them in morphing back into what they'd worn the day we left Disney Kingdom to have our next grand adventures, rather like our clothing all instantly changes when we visit Halloween Town.

We'd traveled into darkness. We'd passed through the door. I'd locked the door to Prydain from the inside.

And just as I was thinking we'd spend our lives in Kingdom Hearts, the darkness that I saw on the opposite side the door I'd been on the outside of at the End of the World, the darkness I doomed Riku and the King to, the entire place suddenly was washed in light.

I'd heard Riku screaming. I'd run to him.

The light – it burned. It purified, it hurt, it seared and it destroyed. It was too pure. Just as the darkness of the Kingdom was too pure, so was this light. I was watching as the colonnades that spanned the landscape were suddenly visible then suddenly demolished. I watched as numerous Heartless lifted their heads to look towards the light only to be blown to smithereens and burst into wisps of black that were nearly instantaneously dissolved by the light. I watched as a door appeared in an instant only to be flung open a moment later, then the world that for a mere instant visible burst into pure white flames and vanish forever.

It was more painful than anything I'd ever experienced. This light was just as horrid as darkness – more, actually. Darkness smothered. Light – this light – burned.

Donald's magic washed over me, a twisted dark spell protecting me for an instant as he and Goofy hid behind a small outcropping of what almost might be rock in the steadily decaying landscape that was the interior of the Kingdom from that bathing destructive force. I used that opportunity to run to the source of that desperate cry.

It was right by a door – a door that was open, through which that horrid purity was pouring. I threw myself against that door, its flat surface a bare, flimsy protector against eminent death.

And when I found myself next to the source of that cry, a Shadow Heartless with brilliant aquamarine eyes, I had felt my heart plummet. Still, seeing that the Heartless was trying to shove the door that was letting the burning light pummel the center of all worlds and the worlds beyond the doors that were connected to it, I was going to help it. Together we'd pressed our backs against the door, shoving with all of our might.

It had been hard. We managed, though, and cut off that horribly bright light. I'd sighed as I slumped down against the door, the Heartless slumping down right next to me. We'd looked towards one another. Granted I couldn't see anything beyond those jewel eyes, but we still made the effort.

And something connected.

I can't explain it still. All I know is… I felt something. Something really, really familiar. And when I tried to reach out to that Heartless, to touch it, to hold it, Donald and Goofy grabbed my arms and took off running with me.

By the time I'd managed to wriggle free, I'd been hauled through an opened door they'd spotted. With a blink and an 'oh!' I realized where we were, what was going on, and what was expected of me.

I'd locked the door even though hesitation and regret danced in my heart.

Why did I feel like I was making yet another mistake? Like….

I felt like I should have dragged that Heartless with me. I still don't know why.

Heaving a sigh from my lips, I groaned as I sat back up and rubbed the back of my head.

"Heavy thoughts, Sora?" Jiminy chirped from my side, having decided that my pocket wasn't an optimum place to reside anymore once we'd come back to Disney Kingdom.

Shaking my head, I flashed a bright grin at him. "Not really. Just… reflecting, I guess you can say."

Goofy plopped down beside me, his large shoes clunking noisily on the hard dirt of the road we were traveling. Flashing a big grin at me, he chuckled, his voice carefree. "Sure got a lot more we can reflect on, right Jiminy?"

"Oh, goodness yes," the cricket said with a smile. "Why, our adventures with Pete and Elliot, meeting the Palomino crew and our adventures with Taran, Eilonwy and Fflewddur in Prydain! I filled almost a whole new book."

"Cool," I said with a grin, even as Goofy let out a soft 'gawrsh' of awe. "Can I read it?"

Offering me the tiny book, Jiminy smiled. "If you don't mind, I'll be holding on to the original from our first adventure. I'm hoping to get some editing done."

"You and those journals," Donald squawked as he sat down with us, grabbing his webbed toes and leaning over to look pointedly at Jiminy. "You don't need to keep rewriting them."

"On the contrary," Jiminy said, his eyes closing as he held the journal of our first adventure close to his chest, his face reflecting nothing but pride in his work, "these records are for the Queen when we return. I'd like them to be as flawless as possible."

"C'mon, Donald. Jiminy's got a reputation to uphold, after all."

"Oh, and I don't?" Donald growled.

I flashed him a grin of challenge. "Well, from what I heard from the ducks I met in Traverse Town-"

"Oh, those boys!" Donald instantly hissed, his feathery face fuming as he instantly hopped to his feet. "When I get my hands on them!"

As he hopped angrily from foot to foot and blathered, his professions degrading into unintelligible gibberish, I looked helplessly at Goofy and Jiminy.

"Oh, don't'cha worry 'bout them, Sora," Goofy offered with a laugh and a smile. "Donald and his nephews are always like that. Nothin'll come of it."

"Not until the boys decide to prank their Uncle directly," Jiminy said with a shake of his head.

Grinning, I shook my head. "Got'cha."

A mere moment later, Goofy pointed down the road, hopping to his feet as well. "Hyuck! Well, I'll be! There's Pluto!"

"Pluto?" I exclaimed, swiveling on my bottom and staring up the road.

Sure enough, wagging his thin black tail, the yellow dog that belonged to the King barked at us before turning and taking off down the road.

I turned to Goofy with a grin that he instantly reflected back at me.

Donald paused his rant, looking at us, then at the fleeing canine. "Well, what're we waiting for?" he sharply professed, scooping Jiminy up in his sailor hat and taking off at a swift run.

Laughing with Goofy, we took off running as one and easily caught up to the duck, our journey resumed with not a step missed.

A grin on my face, I looked to the horizon even as I kept pace with my companions.

My friend, their King… they waited behind closed doors. I'd find them. I'd open them. I'd set them free.

I would open the door to the light. And we'd be reunited once again.

_to be continued…_

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Review replies:

Animegurl14: Why thank you so much for reviewing the last chapter! It was actually quite fun for me to get the KH:CoM and KH2 Rikus out of storage and dust them off – seeing as how he's currently at that wonderful transition between the two games, he had to be a culmination of both personas. I'm glad he came off well! I was hoping that his and Sora's bond would shine through that. :D Once more, thank you so much for reading, and hope you enjoy the rest of the story!

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(the Ansem plushie points vigorously at the 'review chapter' feature. "Darkness-" - the authoress quickly plucks his pull string – "SUBMIT!")


	74. Drawing

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Chapter 74  
The Witch – Drawing

My crayon lightly brushed over the pure white page I'd just flipped to, bypassing some of my earlier works that filled the sketchbook I held in my lap. I would tear them from my book later, to post them around my room and give it some life and color, perhaps to edit them with details that came to me in my dreams.

But right now they'd have to wait. A new dream had visited me. A new drawing danced in the forefront of my brain, my hands eager to produce it.

My dreams guided me in the task I'd been given. That task that would alter the future. The only way to bring a hero to me. The only one who could grant my freedom, grant me friendship, or grant me a reason to exist.

To change his memories, to recreate the most fond desires of his heart, was my focus and goal. Something only I could do.

Through the connection we shared, I would reinvent his memories. A small drawing here, a severed link there, a brush of a different color on otherwise perfectly recalled memories and I would bring him to me. I would bring the Keyblade Master into my cage.

And he would help me. He would free me.

Through the connection I had with him, a connection no one understood including myself, I knew of his gentle heart. His kind nature. His easy-going smile and willingness to help.

I wasn't certain he'd assist me, though. I… am a witch. An oddity. A Nobody that shouldn't rightly exist. At least, that's what Zexion says. He tells me of the connection between Nobody and Heartless, of the existence of shells and hollow corpses once hearts are stripped away. His nighttime droning to me, quiet questions and softly spoken hypotheses, confuse me more than they enlighten me.

I am a courier of memories and spells that never should have existed. That's what Vexen says. His words are even more complex than Zexion's – Zexion attempts to bring his missives to my level, leaving all the scientific jargon that Vexen uses in his conversations behind so he can get me to understand and maybe tell him something that'd be helpful to letting him figure out how and why I exist. Vexen just probes, his words flying right over my head. Then he gets angry when I don't understand what I'm asking.

Still, he's better than two of the other ones here. Marluxia and Larxene. They scare me. Larxene with her angry words and her short temper, who never asks me anything or attempts to explain anything but just snarls at me to do as I'm told and not to ask any questions. Marluxia, who smiles as he tells me of my task, his teeth pointed and his eyes filled with evil.

Zexion says that Nobodies can't really emote, because hearts are needed for emotions to exist. He says that evil doesn't exist for us, because to be evil we'd need emotions. I think he's wrong. I think Marluxia is bad through and through.

But I'll do what he asks, because it's the only option I've got.

If I refuse him, I'll never be free.

He won't kill me. He won't hurt me. He'll just….

He'll abandon me. I'll be alone in this castle. And somewhere within the shell that I am, that scares me more than not existing anymore.

Axel confuses me, too, but different than Vexen. He doesn't try to drown me in science and experiments and questions that I don't understand. Axel doubletalks, giving me contradiction after contradiction. He seems almost like he has my best interest in mind at times, only to completely switch positions to side with Marluxia and Larxene. Still…

There's something in his memories that I can see sometimes in my dreams. Wheat-colored hair, eyes the color of the sky, blades drawn from a missing heart – a shadow.

A shadow just like me. A shadow of someone important. Why he exists within Axel's memories is something I don't understand, but still it derives a tiny amount of trust from me. For if that shadow is the shadow I believe it is, then perhaps the red-headed assassin of the Organization might aid me.

And Lexaeus – he seemed almost kind in comparison to everyone else. Odd, seeing as how he's the biggest and scariest of them all. But he takes no interest in me – his interests seem to revolve more around the overarching problems in the Organization and in Zexion, from what I've overheard during our time here in the castle together. He doesn't really express any caring towards me, but he doesn't outright hate me like Larxene, see me as an oddity like Zexion or Vexen, confuse and taunt me like Axel or use me like Vexen. I guess he's kind of refreshing. It almost makes me wish he'd spend more time in the upper levels of the castle rather than spending all of his time around Zexion, pacing around the basement like they always do.

Every day, though, those in black robes remind me that I should exist. That I'm nothing. I'm Nobody. And my only purpose, my only destiny, is to be their puppet.

They leave me day after day, retreating to do things that are infinitely more important than dealing with me. They remind me daily that I am nothing, and once their task is complete in Castle Oblivion they will be abandoning it and me to the Void, never to be found again.

I am only kept in their presence because they can use me.

I am a shadow. A waif reflection of the one who is the Keyblade Master's light. And because I am _her_ shadow, I can affect him.

Marluxia wants me to make the Keyblade Master a pawn for him.

If I do it, I'll be able to meet him.

I'll be able to escape my lonely existence.

Even though I am a shadow, even though I truly am Nobody, maybe his kindness will envelop me, too.

Maybe he'll rescue me.

I lifted my crayon and smiled faintly at the drawing I'd finished.

Three friends run down a road in a field of green, smiles and laughter radiating from them. The warmth of their hearts shines brilliantly.

Floppy black ears. Soft white feathers. Spiky brown hair.

They are coming for me, whether they realize it or not.

_to be concluded…_

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Review replies:

Moss: Why, thank you so much for reviewing! I'm glad you've enjoyed the story. And congratz on making it through all 73 chapters. XD I'm also quite happy to hear that Sora DOES have some fans out there! He's so abused and neglected. Anyway, there's only this chapter and one more remaining – hope you continue reading, and enjoy the end of BCD!

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(the Ansem plushie stares at the 'review chapter' feature, awaiting a pull on his pull string that never comes. Lacking his bark of "SUBMIT!" he sadly points and hangs his head)


	75. Open

And here it is, the conclusion of 'Behind Closed Doors.' Finally, after all of this time, it's come to an end. It's been a fun bit of writing for me (though at times a bit trying to get the inspiration or the motivation to get moving on this thing again), and I certainly hope you all enjoyed the story as much as I did.

Any encouragement is appreciated. Your reviews have motivated me to keep writing, and (believe it or not) to cull this thing down to something that's manageable. Yes, there were movies lopped out of it for length. There were side plots that never originated. And yet it still ended up 75 chapters long. Geez.

Hopefully you'll find the end of this story satisfying, and will enjoy the upcoming projects I've got lined up. Though my writing might suffer in frequency (I'm still working my rear off to support my family and am still in the military, after all) I intend to keep it going. Maybe, someday, I'll even get back to the original novel I was working on decades ago.

By the way, there's a poll up on my author profile for the next fic – please let your voice be heard, and help me craft that bugger!

So in closing, thanks for following, and enjoy the end of 'Behind Closed Doors'! Any reviews you provide will be highly treasured and used to motivate the commencement of my next story. :)

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts. Don't sue – I'm just an E6 in the USN, and therefore I have no money. Ha.

A/N: Each chapter is written from a different POV. The identity of the 'speaker' is located with the chapter's name. Just trying to avoid confusion here. For review replies, please see the bottom of the chapter. And that, as they say, is that.

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Chapter 75  
The Wanderer – Open

The road was long. My feet were tired. My heart was heavy.

Sora…

He'd outrun me.

With a groan I had laid down, my eyes drifting shut, my hope seeping from me.

I had the conviction to protect him. To support him, even if it was from the interior of darkness itself. But how could I protect him if I couldn't even keep up with him?

In darkness, I'd felt more than Heartless. And the thought of a greater threat to the worlds, to Sora, terrified me.

Heartless, soulless beings, the remnants of emptiness that remained after a heart was stripped away. Normally overcome by the purity of darkness, they are molded into Heartless, absorbed by the absolution of the Kingdom and left as naught but mindless automatons ready to do the Kingdom's bidding. Ready to draw the hearts of the worlds and all of the worlds' inhabitants into the black Kingdom, to reunite everything in darkness.

These beasts, their will to exist overriding and overpowering the simplistic longings of Kingdom Hearts itself, exist beyond its powers.

I heard things as I traveled, trying to follow Sora as he ran along whatever road he was following. Whispers, plots, partial thoughts caught in the tendrils of darkness spoken from the lips of those who use darkness' power to travel through the rifts that segregate existences.

They were going to draw the Kingdom's door to the physical world. They were going to bring Kingdom Hearts under their control, harnessing the black entity it had become to fill their own lacking voids, to complete their own frames.

They were searching for their hearts, as much as I had been searching for mine. But they desired not to wrench theirs free of the Kingdom.

They desired to connect with it in the Kingdom, then through that connection control the very power of darkness that the Kingdom offered.

They sought to become gods.

They were as dangerous, if not more, than the Heartless. The Heartless were driven by simple urges, by natural instincts. Destroy, envelop hearts and bring them to the Kingdom. Complete the Kingdom. Bring all together to be complete. They had no urge to control the universe, to harness power. They were simply driven by a need to fill the voids in Kingdom Hearts.

These beings were driven by the hate and greed in their minds and souls, that which drove them to keep themselves segregated from the Kingdom that would have embraced them.

And they were using the Keyblade Master.

Every stroke of the Keyblade, every freed heart, was being harnessed by them to craft the entryway into Kingdom Hearts. It was creating a Kingdom they could control and harness, drawing those captured, blackened and ensnared vessels the Kingdom used to complete itself into their grip. Through his Keyblade, Sora was giving them the power they needed to bring ultimate darkness under their control.

But there was no way we could stop them.

Sora had to continue his war against the Heartless. He had to continue, or the worlds would come to an end.

I had slowed to listen, to learn, to think and ponder and store all that was floating in darkness-escorted conversation that I inadvertently intercepted to memory.

And in my slowing, I had lost Sora. He had dashed ahead when I'd not been paying attention, leaving me alone in darkness once more.

My energy and my hope decaying, I had come to a stop.

And once I'd laid down for a rest, my hope fled me completely. My eyes drifting shut, I felt darkness wash over me, embracing me. My heart remained firm and stable, keeping that power from overtaking me, but my mind….

The encroaching black left me numb and empty, my heart my only companion.

Slowly, softly, the shadows that engulfed me started to lighten. My eyes, sensitive to its presence even behind my closed eyelids, alerted me to my changing environment even as my heart began to beat with hope. The last time I'd felt the touch of light within darkness was when I'd met once more with Sora. The time before was when I'd met with the mouse King.

I knew Sora was not here. So….

The King?

I cracked open an eye, staring blithely at the empty land that surrounded me.

"Urgh… Where…" I began, my voice tired and course from such long periods of disuse. "Where am I…"

A voice slithered through the emptiness around me. "Sleep."

Startled, I jumped to my feet and stared hard into my surroundings, my eyes burning as they glowered into the unending gray. "Who's there?"

"Sleep," the voice quietly commanded again. "here, between light and dark."

"Between…" my brain whirled as it began to piece together the implications behind the mysterious, unmanned voice's words. Between light and dark…? Had I inadvertently wandered through a door even I couldn't see? Had I somehow begun to cross the threshold between the dark Kingdom and Sora's world of light with my wandering after him?

Or had someone else assisted without my knowledge….

Someone else with power over Kingdom Hearts, or provided by Kingdom Hearts, channeled through a Keyblade?

"The King!" I exclaimed, my brain finally piecing everything together. "Where's the King? Together we closed the door to darkness, and after that…."

I paused.

My mind was a blank after that.

For some reason, while I knew a great amount of time had passed since the door clicked solidly and the mouse King had patted my shoulder as I stared at that eternally locked barrier and my eyes staring across the span of Kingdom Hearts even as I felt Sora run gleefully in the land of Light that dwelled beyond my existence's walls, my mind was blank.

"Grr, why can't I remember?" I hissed.

"Your King is far away," the voice cooed, mocking and soft. "Sleep, and leave the war with darkness in his hands. The thorny light of awakening will bring only anguish to one in your state."

One in my state…? My hand clasped over my heart.

It beat softly under my hand even as I grimaced, realizing just how little light was actually there, just how heavy darkness still rested upon me.

Out of nowhere, that voice's smooth baritone softly murmured, "Turn from the light. Shut your eyes."

A scowl graced my lips as I glared at an empty place in the eternal gray of my surroundings. "You talk like I'm some kind of demon of the dark."

I knew the truth.

I was no creature of the dark….

"Can you face the truth?" that voice responded.

And doubt washed over me.

A glowing ball of dark energy appeared before me, cold and chilling in the emptiness. That voice resonated around me, a lullaby in my ears as it cooed, "Here, blanketed by the darkness, sleep is safety. Sleep is eternal."

I frowned as I stared at that dark ball that absorbed what little light was around it. "Is this… a card?" I muttered, finally noticing the shape it had taken.

"It is a door to the truth," the voice replied with my instant answer. "Take it, and your sleep ends. Take it, and the first step toward the truth. But know this: The truth will bring you pain."

Something in my makeup quaked at that, buried memories that failed to make it to my mind's eye whispering that pain was something I was adept at experiencing, that pain was all my world was constituted of outside of this gray haze of restful nonexistence.

"Will you still go?" that whisper eased around me. "There can be no returning to the sweet security of sleep."

With a snort, my heart burning with pain and anger, I took the card from that black aura that hovered before me. "Yeah, well… Seems like a boring place to take a nap anyway," I snarled, my voice colored by agitation and worry.

"Well said, Riku," the voice chuckled.

The gray vanished, replaced by white.

I stood in a white hallway, white walls with featureless surfaces stretching along either side of me up to a grand arching white ceiling. White pedestals held white vases carrying white ceramic flowers. All was still, plain, lifeless, mocking all that the white purity of light offered.

Before me, pristinely primed on top of white stairs, a white door loomed. Behind me a white wall blocked any hope of retreat.

There was only one way forward.

A frown took my lips as my options were stripped from me. Looking at the card within my fingers, I sighed. "A door to the truth, huh…"

The card in my hand was warm, its dark construct almost comforting with its differentiation from the cold, sterile lifelessness of the hallway I was in.

Through that card, I felt that connection that had faded during my hesitations on the road amplify.

That presence I had been seeking, the one I was trying so desperately to keep up with and someday overtake, was through that door.

Sora was already there.

Shaking my head, my lips curling with a grin, I sighed. Couldn't that kid ever remain in one place? At least, couldn't he stay somewhere long enough for me to catch up?

Once again, I was behind a closed door, that flimsy barrier all that kept me away from him.

Laying my right hand on it, the card warm in my left, I pushed it open.

_The End_

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First off, let me thank everyone who's ever left a review on this story. Also, let me very, very heartily thank everyone who's favorited this story and had it on alert for so very long! I certainly hope you feel it was worth the journey as I do, and once more every fav, every review and every alert was inspiring and motivational for me. I couldn't have completed this story without all of you!

Any reviews that are received for this chapter and/or the story in its totality will be responded to individually via that nifty fanfiction . net reply feature I have never used. :P We'll see how that goes.

Review replies:

LoneCipher91: Why, thank you so much for finally submitting! XD And thank you very much for the complimentary review. I'm so happy that you've found this fic a fun read over the years, and am very happy to have at least one satisfied reader at the conclusion of this work. Thank you so much for the support, and for the continued following, and I certainly hope you're satisfied with the end of this story. :D

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(the Ansem plushie, having outlived his usefulness, is packed diligently in a box with the rest of the plushies the authoress has been gifted over the course of the story and is shoved into the closet where he belongs)

If you're curious, movies that were removed were as follows: for Sora: 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit' and for Leon, Cloud and the FF angst gang, 'Disney's Robin Hood'. Where Leon was going to be a lank and wild lion, Cloud a wolf, Cid the guy who laughs his arse off and stays in the gummi where he's human and safe, Vincent a giant bat, and Cait Sith/Reeve a real cat who can go have alcohol for the first time in YEARS, huzzah!

This entire fic was designed to link Kingdom Hearts 1 and Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. Anything that occurs after BCD is already covered by KH:CoM, which you can purchase for your Playstation 2 or for your Gameboy Advance SP (playable also on the Gameboy DS). I recommend it – it's got a funky battle system with the cards and all and doesn't do much but rehash a lot of KH1, but the additions it makes to the storyline (and RIKU'S STORY OMG*fangirl squeal*) are well worth it.

Thanks again for following! Hope to see you again following my other fics. :D


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